THE ALIENATED HEART
by ravendarkholme23
Summary: "You can fire mana from your eyes!" "I tend not to do it. Worried they'll explode or something." In which, a girl who can manipulate mana requests the help of a boy with a fancy watch, a boy who can absorb things and another girl who can manipulate mana, to find a missing object of hers and stop a full-scale alien invasion. {Ben 10: Alien Swarm} {Ben Tennyson / OC} {COMPLETE}
1. PROLOGUE

_**Prologue**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

In this world, you either win or you lose.

There is no middle ground when you are fighting for the existence of a planet or species.

The stakes were higher against intergalactic enemies. You either walk away or you don't. And in either outcome, you still might not walk away in one piece. Morbid, but true.

A young woman under the alias of Kade Roman was one of the people that believed that. She was an Anodite, an alien made up of pure mana; _energy_.

Most Anodites had an 'every person for themselves' way of thinking and they thought humans as lesser creatures than themselves.

Kade wasn't like that. Sure, her real name was alien, and so was her real form, mind, and knowledge, but her morals; they were human. She put others before herself and if push came to shove, she was _always_ there to help her friends.

If you were lucky enough to call yourself her friend.

Kade was an independent person, who didn't have many close friends. Her mentor, the Anodite Verdona, was one of the only people she counted as a close friend and she tried to depend on her as little as possible. Kade _hated_ having to rely on people.

Not many people knew about her alien nature. Kade kept it to herself, making sure that it wasn't something that could be used against her. Kade was an honest person and she was closed-off, but whether or not how she felt in the morning she _always_ protected people that couldn't protect themselves.

She was a _hero_.

A reckless one. But you couldn't have everything.

 **XXXXX**

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 **I have posted this prologue to my story, The Alienated Heart, and I hope at least one person views it.**

 **I imagine my OC, Kade Roman, to look a bit like Adelaide Kane. Her signature look is a dark-blue leather jacket and throughout the chapters, there are a few things that are altered in Kade's appearance.**

 **Kade is also pronounced 'Kay-d' like 'paid' but with a K. Just in case, you wonderful readers were confused.**

 **Please review and comment, because constructive criticism is always welcome.**

 **~ Raven**


	2. CHAPTER 1

_**Reckless By Nature**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

The wheels of her bike screeched loudly, the rubber wheels losing contact on the road as she sent the bike flying over a ramp. The rider in the dark blue jacket was way ahead of the one in the red. _As per usual,_ Kade thought as she looked behind her, seeing Elena just turning the corner Kade turned three minutes ago. Elena was a good rider, but Kade was a _great_ rider and she proved it without trying. She could leave anyone, Elena included, in the dust after a minute on her bike. She landed with barely a bump and skidding low to the ground, Kade turned into a large warehouse. With the shriek of rubber on concrete, the bike pulled itself upwards and both rider and bike were completely unharmed. Kade swung her leg over the bike, standing beside it in her tell-tale blue jacket and tight leather pants. She waited, patiently, leaning gently on her bike. There were two young men standing outside a green, black striped car. The lean boy in black was the buyer, the other was merely the man who told him of the product. Kade knew of the man in black standing beside the car.

 _Kevin Ethan Levin._

 _Osmosian._

 _Unstable, however, stable at the moment._

 _Dangerous._

 _And…one of my closest friends._

Kade ran through these facts in her head like she was reading a dossier. It was his information, condensed. _If Kevin's here, I bet Gwen and Ben are going to show._ Kade knew the two young Tennyson's personally. They were friends when they were children. Hopefully they wouldn't remember her. Her hands were planted on her hips, helmet still firmly placed on her head. Three riders pulled into the warehouse after a minute and Kade let out a slight sigh of relief. _Never realised they were that slow_ , Kade thought and she stretched, cracking her back.

Helio got off his bike, removed his helmet and grabbed the briefcase, "Are you the buyer?"

Kevin shrugged as Kade moved over to stand by the still helmeted, Elena who sat on her bike.

"It depends. What are you selling?"

"Alien technology...the good stuff."

Helio placed the briefcase on the hood of Kevin's car and Kevin made a face, "Watch the paint." Kevin grabs a canister from the case, staring at the small chips inside, "What is it?"

The lead biker raised a brow, "You don't know?"

Kevin glared and stepped forward, "You don't know, do you? Is it a weapon? Does it fire? Can it blow stuff up? See, this is important information for a prospective buyer."

Helio shrugged, "It's alien technology, man. It's gotta be worth some money. Are you interested or not?"

"Just chill." Kevin commented and hitched a thumb over his shoulder, "Let me talk to my partners."

"Partners?" Fitz, the 'middle-man,' questioned, "You didn't say anything about partners."

Kevin raised a dark eyebrow, "Neither did you."

Ben and Gwen came into sight and the guy beside Kevin laughed nervously, "You're working with him?"

Elena stiffened beside Kade and Kade looked to her quickly. Hopefully they could help; hopefully hanging out with two idiots was worth the trouble of getting the Plumbers' help.

"Actually, I'm working with her." Ben said casually, nodding towards Gwen, "Kevin doesn't really work, he just stands around flexing his muscles."

"Yeah, how about l flex 'em in your face?" Kevin asked sarcastically.

 _You can smell the testosterone in here,_ Kade mused and grinned beneath her visor.

"Who are these jokers, man?" The man beside Helio asked and the Fitz shook his head.

"I can't tell you. I'm just the middle man."

Gwen crossed her arms, her lips pursed in annoyance, "We're just some regular old folks who are beginning to think this is a big, fat waste of our time."

Ben nodded slightly and turned to Kevin, "What do we got?"

"I've never seen anything like 'em, Ben. They're complex. Must be grade 9 tech at least."

The nano-tech began to whir in their canisters and Kade noticed. Worried, she grabbed her necklace, a nervous habit of hers. Kade inconspicuously flicked her fingers, blue energy sliding to the ground and tightening the lids on the canisters holding the nano-chips.

Ben moved the Omnitrix, the alien watch merely giving a buzz and flickering erratically, "Whatever they are; they're screwing up the Omnitrix."

"What's with you guys? I've never met buyers like you before."

Kade let out an irritated sigh and flipped up the visor on her helmet, eyebrow raised in annoyance, "You've never met anyone like them before because they're not just black market lowlifes like you. They're Plumbers."

All eyes turned to her and Kade mock-bowed as if she was welcoming the attention. The superhero trio stared at the two in leather – one in blue leather, the other in red – and both looked as if they were completely at ease and discussing the weather, not at a black market meet-up.

Helio laughed, "You mean they're gonna pay for this stuff by fixing my toilet?"

Kade could hear the sarcasm in Elena's voice and basically _feel_ the annoyance radiating off her, "The Plumbers are a secret interplanetary security force, saving the world so we don't have to."

Kade half-growled, cocked out a hip and placed her hand on it, "Basically, one Plumber is worth ten of you."

Kevin scoffed, "Oh, right, of course. We're cops from outer space. Or maybe, we're firemen from Atlantis."

Kade grinned behind her helmet, absolutely _adoring_ Kevin's attitude. Elena flipped up her visor as Ben asked, "How did you learn about these Plumbers you think we are?"

"Everything we know about the Plumbers, l learned the same way you did..." Elena said as she walked over to Ben and removed her helmet, "…Ben."

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Chapter 1 up, not even sure if anyone will read it, but whatever.**

 **Favorite, follow, review. Constructive criticism is always welcome.**

 **~ Raven**


	3. CHAPTER 2

_**Reunions of Best/Old Friends**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

"Elena?" Ben asked, surprised, and Elena motioned for Kade to move forward. With a shake of her helmeted head, Kade moved closer, pulling it off. Her black hair cascaded in shiny curls down her back and her eyes were just their regular dark brown. No signs of the pain over the last three years remained to be seen on her, but they were remembered in her heart. Her features were back to how they used to be; a mere spell to make them appear that way. There was no indication of dark blue hair or even darker blue eyes.

Ben, Gwen and Kevin's eyes widened and Kade nodded to each of the Tennyson cousins before she turned to Kevin.

"Kev," She said lightly, smiling and he grinned back.

"Az."

Kade's smile widened at her other nickname, being that Kevin was the only one who called her that. And if Kade was to be completely honest; Kevin, Max, Verdona and her own mother were the only ones who actually knew her real name. Ben and Gwen though, exchanged confused glances at the name 'Az.'

"No. Way." Gwen muttered, her arms crossed, as her green eyes darted between the girls in front of her.

"Why are you here Elena? Kade?" Ben asked, confused and Kade titled her head.

"Oh, you still remember me. I'm honored." Elena replied snippily and Kade placed her hand on her shoulder. They shared a look and Elena stepped back slightly and Kade decided to take over answering questions.

Kevin let out a breath, "Hello? Can anyone toss me a clue as to what's going on here?"

Gwen wrinkled her nose slightly and began to inform her boyfriend, "Kevin, this is Elena Validus and you apparently already know, Kade Roman. They're Plumbers' Kids, like us."

Kade flicked her fingers in a wave, smirking, and Elena scoffed, "Not like you, Gwen. None of my ancestors were aliens. I don't have any cool powers to rely on." Kade could hear the unspoken, 'not like Kade' in her sentence. The three-quarter Anodite knew that Elena was envious of her powers, thinking, that if she had Kade's powers, she would stop people from hurting those she loved. At times, Kade herself sometimes wished that she didn't have her powers. _Because they're more of a burden, than a gift._

Ben ignored her, speaking to Kevin, "We hung out for a while back in the day. Then Elena's dad quit and so did Kade. And all three of you moved away and we haven't heard from you since."

Elena scowled and stepped closer, her voice holding a biting quality, and Kade's eyes narrowed in an emotion close to hate. "Is that what they told you? That my dad quit, that _Kade_ quit? Considering that you have more power than all the Plumbers combined, you sure don't know much."

Kade glanced down in sadness and anger. Her father had died when she was twelve and her only family were the Plumbers. Two years later, Kade had left the Plumbers and everything she ever knew. And her _family_ had thought she would just leave them? Obviously, they hadn't known her very well, and truthfully, they hadn't. Kade had kept a lot from them all, which had led to Max's mistrust in her.

"Max sure knows how to lie," Kade commented, having regained her composure. The trio looked at her, "Please, like I'd leave when I was so…" The dark-haired girl trailed off and both Kevin and Elena knew what she meant. _Unstable_.

Ben looked adamant, "Then why don't you tell me? What's going on? What are you doing here with these chips?" His voice dropped slightly in pitch, "Why did you leave?"

Ben's question was meant for both of the girls, but his eyes never left Kade who merely looked back at him impassively and continued speaking, ignoring Ben's question, "We're here to find you. The Plumbers don't exactly advertise. We need your help, Ben. It's Elena's father. He's been abducted and a piece of my past has been stolen."

Kevin raised one brow with a grumpy expression, "Call the cops."

Kade tossed him a look, "They can't help. His disappearance is connected with these alien chips. And my…possession…is distinctly alien."

"We'll help you find him Elena, and whatever you're looking for Kade. You're both Plumbers' kids, and friends."

Kade stepped closer and ran a teasing finger along his jaw. She was good at this, with a single touch she could tell everything about them; Kade could tell what he was thinking, what he planned to do, _who he was_. Of course, her talents became more elaborate – and seductive – as she grew up. Reading Ben quickly, she could tell Ben was genuine when he said he would help, that he cared; but people had said that to Kade before. Ben shivered slightly at her touch but it was gone almost as quickly as it arrived.

"Are we, Ben? Am _I_? Really? Because life's been pretty hard for the last three years. And I don't recall you ever looking us up. Any of us, Elena, Victor or me. I was unpredictable and powerful…which _really_ wasn't a good mix. And Max threw me out into the gutter, _like a dog._ "

Kade's magic slipped and for a moment the younger Tennyson's saw anger roiling in blue eyes – the colour of the deepest part of the ocean – that should have been brown. Suddenly the chips began to crackle and glow and the glimpse of her eyes was gone. Kade lifted up her hand, blue mana glowing from her palm. All but the sellers knew of Kade's powers, powers that only grew even more from the last time they saw each other. She passed her hand over the chips and she gasped in shock as the mana disappeared. The two sellers near the chips stepped back in worry, horror etched on their faces at the display of power.

"They're awake," Kade mumbled as she looked at Elena.

"What is that?" Ben asked quickly, "Kade? Elena?"

"I don't know." Elena protested.

Kade shook her head, worry clear in her voice, "They should never have woken up. They were completely inert! I scanned them more than once!"

Kevin and Gwen spoke at the same time.

"It's a double-cross."

"A trap, Ben."

"Oh, so help me, Kev…" Kade trailed off, glaring daggers at her best friend. Kevin trusted Kade more than anyone else, but the way he accused both Elena and Kade, was really playing on the young Anodite's nerves.

"No! I swear it!" Elena protested again, "We just wanted your help!"

"Don't wanna impose on your little dysfunctions, so..." Kevin mumbled but was silenced with another sharp glare from his blue-jacket-wearing friend. The chips began to crack and whistle and started to shake in their canisters. With a shatter, they broke free, spiraling into the air in complicated patterns. Kade's eyes widened.

"Shit!" Kade cried, conjuring mana to her hands in orbs and lifting them up defensively. _This is bad, this is really, really bad._ She balanced herself slightly in front of Elena, her stance protective and slightly menacing.

"Kevin," Ben started, "I think you were right about these not being ordinary computer chips. Stay down!"

The chips continued to buzz and swirl and Kade glanced over to Gwen. "Gwen!"

Gwen looked up at Kade's warning and expertly flipped backwards out of the way of the incoming nano-chips, and fired back a pink mana orb, "Ben! I don't mean to backseat drive, but it might be a good time for the Omnitrix."

"Not!" Ben retorted, continuing to turn the Omnitrix, but was only met with a gold, flickering figure, "I think it's having a meltdown or something."

Kevin chuckled and looked at the raven-haired girl next to him, "Don't sweat it, dude. If you can't handle it...I know two people who can." Kevin smirked at Kade. "Anytime you wanna power up, Az."

"I don't always listen to you, you know that Kev?" The 'no-nonsense' face Kevin gave her made Kade stop talking.

Kade bit her lip and moved slightly away from the small group, not waiting for Kevin to answer, letting power flow through her. Her eyes flashed open and the entirety of her eyes became a pure, dark blue. Kade's hair grew into long, dark blue tendrils, her body becoming the same colour. She had changed into her Anodite form, becoming her natural state of a humanoid body made of pure mana.

"Happy, Kevin?" Kade asked, her voice thrumming with power, and Kevin shrugged. Elena, Gwen and Ben, who had not ever seen her other form, looked at her in awe. Gwen recognised the Anodite form she was in, having a similar one herself, but she had never seen blue mana.

"We need you ready to fight; I know how you prefer that form."

Kade shrugged and floated into the air. She made a 'come-hither' gesture to the nano-chips and they shot forward. She fired mana expertly at swarms of chips as Kevin ran over to a support beam and began to climb it. Kade's hair slashed like knives through the chips. Halfway up, the Osmosian absorbed the metal and swung around, breaking apart a group of nano-chips. Kade slashed out a hand and blue mana followed her arm and cut a swarm of nano-chips in half and she entrapped another group in an orb that she swiftly combusted. Floating back down to the ground and landing beside Kevin, the Osmosian and the Anodite high-fived.

Kade grinned like a Cheshire-cat and cracked her knuckles, the smile looking eerie on her Anodite almost-expressionless face. "I was hoping for a fight."

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Chapter 2 up!**

 **Dedicated to Papercrane26 for his support.**

 **Follow, favorite and review please! Constructive criticism is always welcome.**

 **~ Raven**


	4. CHAPTER 3

**_Pure Mana Burns Metal Apparently_**

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

Ben didn't realise until Kade changed form. It was a brother-sister relationship between Kade and Kevin. It was still quite a task to try and figure out how Kade knew Kevin, but it was a fight now and he had to wait to ask. It had been making him jealous in a way, and he could tell that Gwen felt the same way. Gwen knew that Kevin and Ben weren't perverted but they were hormonal teenage boys. So when Kade changed form and basically became a 'naked' girl, and when Kevin looked at Gwen, checking if she was okay, barely glancing at Kade, reassured her that he didn't think of Kade in that way, no matter what past they shared.

Ben was a different story. Given, this was really _not_ the time to be distracted. He couldn't seem to take his eyes off Kade who continued to break apart swarms of the alien chips. A wall of mana had situated itself in front of Ben and Elena and was protecting them. Kade was extremely powerful, due to her heritage. The girl was three-quarters Anodite, her mother being full-Anodite and her father had been the offspring of an Anodite woman and human man. Kade's father had been a Plumber before he died, so being a Plumber was in her blood and was just as prominent as her Anodite being.

Ben only snapped out of it when Kade landed next to him and dissolved the shield of mana in front of them. "They're not just chips. They're alien nano-technology. I worked on them for a while, analysing them with Elena's dad, when…when I was with the Plumbers. The attack is too organized, there's an intelligence behind it."

Ben nodded and pointed upwards to a small catwalk, "I don't know if he's intelligent, but I think we found the puppeteer."

The five teenagers looked up to see a man in a trench-coat who seemed to be controlling the nano-chips. Kade glanced around for a moment and realised that 'middle-man' Fitz, Helio and his buddy had left. With a small shake, Kade turned back to the situation at hand. The figure in the trenchcoat moved his hands, the swarm of nano-chips shifting to resemble a tornado.

"That's not good." Ben commented as he began to run forward, "Ready or not! Come on, Spider Monkey."

A blue shield blocked the nano-chips from hitting Ben as he changed and glanced down at his form, "Big Chill? That'll work." He turned to look at Kade and nodded at the shield, "Thanks."

Kade flew up to hover next to him, "No problem."

With a reassuring smile, Kade slid away from the shields and allowed the nano-tech to swarm her. Gwen, Kevin, Ben and Elena all yelled in worry but after a second, dark blue mana exploded from Kade in a circle and incinerated the chips.

"Don't let them touch you! They'll try to burrow into your skin and control your mind! Make you part of a type of hive mind!" Kade yelled to the others and Ben flew to her. "I was right! Three years ago, when I worked on them, I was _sure_ that they weren't inactive, that they would wake up at some point!"

"Are you alright? Did they get under your skin?" Big Chill questioned, flying towards Kade.

"No," Kade replied shaking her head, "No skin at the moment. Pure mana burns."

Big Chill breathed out an icy breath in relief. Kade was quite happy to be back with her friends and she glanced at the quarter-Anodite, human and half-Osmosian back on the ground before she placed a shield around them. Gwen and Kevin could protect themselves, but Kade was somewhat fearful for the safety of her entirely-human friend.

Kade and Big Chill began to fly in the same direction around the nano-tech swarm. Gwen rushed forward and fired a large blast of mana at the chips. The chips seemed to move apart; the chips leaving a hole for the mana to pass through.

"Hold on, Gwen!" Ben called down to his cousin and inhaled a deep breath, blowing out a gust of ice. But the nano-chips moved, and slashed out at the hero, sending him spiraling away. Big Chill shook his head and began to fly again as Kade created walls of mana around the chips, restricting their movement. Big Chill began to freeze the entire funnel of nano-tech, flying in circles as the unknown man stood on the catwalk.

"Look out!" Kade yelled, creating a shield over the three teens on the ground as the nano-tech exploded out of their icy containment, raining down chunks of ice everywhere. Kade yelped slightly as ice shards bounced off the shield towards her, but Ben pulled her out of the way, protecting them with Big Chill's wings. Kade smiled at him in thanks, a smile that Ben easily returned.

Big Chill flew down closer to the ground, Kade following after him, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Elena responded, "Thanks."

"Who is that guy, Elena?" Kevin asked as they stared up at the masked man. Kade landed beside him, transforming back into her human form.

Elena looked steadily at Kevin, "I don't know."

"Then let's find out." Big Chill darted forward towards the man. The puppeteer of the nano-chips directed another swarm at the hero, who dodged it expertly. As soon as Ben righted himself, he blew gusts of ice at where the man had been standing. Icy fog began to creep around the man, who jumped and sent another swarm, this time, the swarm passing by the alien hero. The group of nano-chips shot towards Gwen.

"No!" Ben cried, shooting down towards Gwen. She jumped out of the way just in time, hitting the ground with an audible 'thunk.' "Gwen!"

Gwen and Kevin, who had rushed forward to shield Gwen, extended out of their crouch. Ben flew down to his cousin and friend, transforming back. "Gwen, are you okay?"

The young quarter-Anodite shook her fringe out of her eyes, "Yeah, I'm fine." Truthfully, Gwen was slightly worried. She wouldn't have been able to survive a head-on hit from the nano-chips, and then Kevin had heroically jumped in between the chips, shielding Gwen with himself…well, if Kevin had gotten hurt, Gwen would never have forgiven herself.

"Who is that guy?" Kevin's voice was tense, and Ben turned to look up at the catwalk.

"I think you mean, who was he?" Suddenly, Ben remembered something. "Elena? Kade?"

Ben looked around for the pair, but both riders and their bikes had disappeared in the commotion. Ben tried to hid the sad look on his face as he turned back to look at his friends.

"If you're looking for your girlfriend, and my best friend," Kevin spoke with an air that suggested that if Ben so much as _looked_ at Kade wrong, that there would be trouble. "I think your personal charm was too much for them."

"Kevin was right…" Gwen said, agreeing with her boyfriend, "She set us up." Gwen didn't add Kade to the statement, knowing that she was far more trustworthy than her red-jacket-wearing friend.

"Did they?" Ben asked, sadness crumpling his features slightly, not picking up on the fact that Gwen only implied Elena in the betrayal. _Kade would never_ …Ben realised he really didn't know Kade anymore, the three years they had been separated would do that to even the strongest of bonds. Ben glanced around the destroyed warehouse, "I'm not so sure."

 **XXXXX**

Back at Bellwood Motors, the three teenagers stepped out of their green muscle car.

"The whole thing is wrong from top to bottom," commented Ben as he fiddled with the Omnitrix.

Kevin walked around the car to stand beside Gwen, "Yeah, starting with that crazy biker babe girlfriend of yours."

"Elena's not my girlfriend, Kevin," Ben began to walk towards the shop. "We were, like, thirteen."

Kevin immediately smirked, "Who said I was talking about Elena?"

Gwen rolled her eyes, hurrying after the brunette boy, "Their story doesn't add up, Ben. Why sell alien tech on the black market just to find the Plumbers when Elena's father _and_ Kade used to be one?"

"Kade said that something happened to Elena's dad back when they lived here and we weren't told the truth about it." Ben had stopped on the steps of the mechanics and was now waving his hand at his friends, "Kade would never have left us, unless she was forced out. If that's the case, Grandpa Max has some serious explaining to do." Ben pushed open the door, and Gwen and Kevin followed after him.

Ed stood behind the counter, talking to a teenage girl and her father, "I'm sorry, that old girl's gonna need new pistons. There's no getting around it." Ed handed a receipt to the man.

"Hey, Ed." Ben greeted as the three teenagers walked through.

"Hey, guys," Ed responded and Kevin turned his attention to the man.

"Gotta grab something from the back." Ed gave a look of affirmative. The girl who had been staring at them since Ben had entered the building spoke.

"Hey, Ben, going to the game tomorrow?"

"Uh…" The Omnitrix-wielder paused, "I hope so, Molly. Just got hit with some serious, uh, homework."

"You know Benji," Kevin commented as he pulled a slice of pizza out of the fridge, "All work and no play."

 **XXXXX**

Elena and Kade watched from the window, waiting for the teens to enter the base. "Wow…" Kade hummed as she leant casually against the window, next to Elena who was peering in, quite creepily in Kade's opinion. "That girl is so into him, she doesn't even question his obvious lie."

Elena nudged the girl, "Shut up."

"I'm sorry, just saying what's on my mind." Kade muttered back as she picked at her nails in a bored fashion.

The two waited a moment longer before Elena nodded, "Let's go."

Kade titled her head sarcastically, following after the Validus girl, "Well, maybe we should do what normal people do and knock on the door. Not break in."

 **XXXXX**

"I don't recognize it and I really don't like it," remarked Gwen as she rolled a dead nano-chip between her fingers. Ben had grabbed the spanner with the key attached from the can by the door.

"Me neither," Ben supplied, "Sooner we get that under the scanner, the sooner we can hunt down that creep and his army of flying chips."

Kevin chewed on the slice in his hand, "You mean the chips your gal pals illegally had in their possession?"

Ben half-listened as he waited for the security behind the door to unlock. Gwen shot Kevin a look, "All right, Kev. I think he gets it."

The trio entered the hidden elevator and Ben glanced at Kevin, who was eating and drinking from a can. "I don't get what you see in him." Drops of the drink split from the can and Gwen looked away with a grin.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Dedicated to Papercrane26 for his impatience and terrific reviews. Thanks so much!**

 **Follow, favorite and review please. Constructive criticism is always welcome.**

 **~ Raven**


	5. CHAPTER 4

_**Some Families Have Huge Trust Issues**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

"System's up."

" _Good afternoon, Ben_ ," The computer system replied as the brunette sat in the desk chair. " _Now activating all partitions_."

"Ben," Gwen began, causing her cousin to swing around towards her, "Did you ask Grandpa Max if we could use the Comm Centre?"

"You wanna start solving this thing or you wanna go look for a permission slip?" The green-eyed teenager turned back to the computer. Gwen shot Kevin a look, who merely raised his hands.

The trio began searching for all they could find about the chips; Kevin and Ben going through all the files available, and Gwen analysing the chip under a microscope.

" _Engaging comprehensive interior and exterior scan_. _Biological and inorganic material detected. Molecular density is inert._ "

Gwen adjusted the lens on the scope, "Austenitic, ferritic, and martensitic phase microstructure. Both organic and inorganic materials."

"Gwen, you are a credit to the science club," Ben remarked dryly as he shook his head.

Kevin tapped at the keyboard, "I've never seen anything like this. I mean, it's tech, but it's also a carbon-silken based life form."

"So they're alive." Ben leant back in his chair, "Man, I'm liking these less and less."

"Well, they were alive, kind of," Kevin corrected, "Now they're in alien chip heaven."

The dark-haired boy smirked and turned his seat back around. Gwen added, "Let me see if I can trace where they came from."

The red-headed Anodite raised a glowing hand, projecting her mana on the chip. After a moment, she shook her head, "They're completely inert. I can't pick up any energy signature."

"What now?"

"Well, maybe I can jumpstart an energy pulse, but it will take forever, and it'll be a total pain in the…" Kevin trailed off at the expectant look on Gwen's face. "Alright, I'll get right on it."

"Or, we could just find Kade and Elena and ask them where they came from. Kade worked on them, she's the only one who knows more about them." Ben suggested but Gwen was immediately opposed to the idea.

"What makes you think that those two would tell you the truth? They could have set us up."

"They're one of us," Ben denied, "Kade is an Anodite as well, how can you turn your back on her?"

At that, Gwen bit her lip for a moment before she retorted, "They _were_ one of us. You have no idea who they are now. You can't trust them."

"Evidently," The cousins continued to argue, Ben's temper rising, "I can't trust anyone. I can't even trust Max."

"Trust me do what?" Max suddenly appeared behind the three, in his ever-present flowered shirt, a bowl in his hands.

"Hey Grandpa." Gwen attempted a lie, as they all tried to look nonchalant, "We can't trust you to make soup without putting baked hummus or lizard gizzards in it."

"Hmmm," Max hummed in thought, "That sounds like a pretty good combo. What are you guys doing down here in the hole on off hours?"

"Uh, we had a little situation." Kevin commented.

At that moment, the computer loudly spoke, " _Commencing scan_." Max saw the object on the screen and placed his bowl down quickly.

"Hey, what's that? Looks familiar. I've seen that somewhere before." Max mused aloud, staring at the computer.

"You have? Where?" Gwen questioned quickly and Max swallowed.

"Max, there's something you need to explain—" Ben was cut off by the computer.

" _Unidentified intrusion at entryway three._ "

"Sounds like we've got an uninvited guest." Gwen lifted a hand, her eyes and hand lighting up with mana as Max instructed Kevin. "Kev, punch up a tracker on the complex."

"No need," Gwen told them, and they glanced at the glowing Anodite. "I've got 'em."

 **XXXXX**

The four walked down a corridor, Gwen's hand still glowing as she tracked the energy. It was odd – powerful, far more powerful than she thought it should be for an average human – but she didn't voice her thoughts. "They're in Max's office."

"They better not touch my model train set!" Max groused as they hurried down the hall. Max loaded his gun, "I just painted the caboose!"

The three teenagers and older man entered Max's office, gun raised as well as mana-fueled hand. "Over here, guys," Gwen directed as she raised a hand at the desk.

"Whoever you are, you picked the wrong place to break into. You're going to be one fried, roasted and baked…" Kevin threatened, absorbing the wood of the desk before he cut himself off, Elena having stood up from behind the desk. "Babe?"

"It's okay, Max," Ben added, lowering Max's gun, "You probably don't recognize her, she's…"

Max raised the gun again as Elena walked forward, "It's not okay. It's a Validus."

"Don't forget the Roman," the three-quarter Anodite called lightly. Kade had been given her father's first name as her last name. Instead of making her Kade Jones, daughter of Roman Jones, Kade's mother had elected to call her Kade Roman.

Ben smiled goofily at Kade over his shoulder. Kade had slightly frightened Ben when she had appeared as she did. Kade was pushed close to Ben's back, her arms draped over his shoulders and hanging close to his chest. Kade was the same height as Gwen, making her chin rest comfortably on Ben's shoulder. Kade didn't miss the smile aimed at her, "Miss me?"

"How'd you get in here?" Max snarled at the two girls, Kade moving away from Ben to rest her arm on her slightly taller friend's shoulder. Kade smirked as did Elena, the girl in red holding up the spanner with the key attached.

Kevin raised a brow, "It's time to get Big Ed some glasses."

"Been a long time, Mr Tennyson," Elena greeted, her arm falling back to her side and Kade perched her body on the edge of the desk.

"You shouldn't have come here, Elena, Kade." Max warned and Kade rolled her eyes.

"Please," Kade scoffed, swinging her legs, "I'm always told that, and that never stops me."

Gwen leant forward to see Max around her cousin, "Max, Elena and Kade were the ones who set up the sale of those weird chips."

Kade pressed a hand to her chest in mock-hurt as realization struck Max, "Of course, I knew I'd seen those before. It's time for you to go!"

"Mr Tennyson, I had to do that. I need help, and it was the only way I could think of to get it." Elena was desperate, more than Kade knew she'd like to admit, but this was how it was going to go. Max would say no, and they would be left with nothing. Again…

"You know the rules!" Max barked, but Elena pressed on.

"It's my father. He's been kidnapped by whoever, or whatever made those chips. We knew that only the Plumbers could help."

Max looked sharply at Kevin, "Get them outta here!"

Kade scoffed, "And some families have some real trust issues. Like this one."

"You're not serious," Ben protested, "They need help."

"That's an order!"

"You heard the man," Gwen stated, as she stepped forward and gripped Kade's elbow, "I don't know what's going on, but he means it. Come on." Gwen began pulling Kade and Elena away but Kade ripped her arm from her grasp.

"Then I'll tell you what's going on, Gwen. Your sweet old grandpa turned his back on us three years ago. Threw us all out on the street when we needed his help, lied to you to cover his tracks. I was a _child_ , and Elena did nothing, and yet, she paid for the sins of the father." Kade snarled in anger, blue flashing from her closed fists.

Elena pressed her hand firmly into Kade's shoulder, they really didn't need an outburst. "Now, my father is in serious trouble, Kade could get _killed_ , and Max still won't help us."

Kade winced slightly at that. _She shouldn't have said I could die. I hope they haven't noticed._ And they hadn't, no one in the group asked what Elena had meant.

"Is that true?" Ben asked, "Can't we just talk to them?"

Max looked to his grandson, "No, Ben. Anything either of them said would be a lie."

Gwen frowned slightly and Max gestured to Kevin to grab the girls, "Kevin."

"Thanks for the help. You guys are real heroes." Elena had her arm wrapped around Kade, who was trying exceptionally hard to stop the tears from falling down her cheeks. "And, Ben, thanks for being a real friend."

The half-Osmosian grabbed Elena's elbow, who shook it off and pushed past Gwen roughly. Gwen stumbled slightly and glared at Elena, but they were all quickly distracted by a slight sobbing noise coming from Kade. Kevin reached for his best friend, but she snatched her arm away and lifted hurt eyes up at Max.

"How could you?" Max extended an arm out to the girl, but she let out a sharp, biting snarl. "How could you!? I used to call you 'grandfather!' You helped raise me! And you tossed me out, so easily!" Suddenly, Kade became deathly calm, something that was far more terrifying than her tears or her attacks. "Did you even know? Did you even care how much I have suffered because of you; how much Victor and Elena suffered?"

Max opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Kade's eyes were bright with fury, but her face remained stony. "Anodites, are required to release excess energy from their bodies. If they don't, it begins to change the Anodite's appearance. When they don't, either because they're scared or too unpredictable, the mana leaks out. The more mana, the bigger the change…and the bigger the explosion." Lifting a shaky hand, Kade ran her fingers through her hair. The strands of once long, black hair, became as dark a blue as the midnight sky, a colour that matched her eyes – and her mana. Gwen, Ben and Max gasped, Kevin unsurprised, having already known of this years ago and Elena had been told by Kade beforehand.

"I was raised to protect people, to put the lives of others before mine," Kade stopped in front of Max, dark blue eyes piercing his. "I destroyed a small town, and killed sixty-five _innocent_ people." Max's eyes widened, but the Roman girl wasn't finished, "And then I fixed it all; brought all sixty-five people back to life, remade the buildings. It almost killed me. And then I locked myself away, _absolutely terrified_ of what a monster I had become."

Kade glanced between them, a slight look of disgust on her face, "You say you're heroes. But that's a lie. You're failing…you can't even tell the bad guys from the good."

Without another word, Kade linked arms with Elena and both stalked out. Ben watched them, sadness in his gaze. Elena sent him a glare as Kevin walked behind them, his hand on Kade's shoulder.

"What's wrong with you?" Ben burst out as soon as they had left the room.

"Nothing's wrong with me," Max countered, "But there's a lot wrong with her."

Ben glared and sneered, "You better not be talking about Kade."

"Elena's Victor Validus' daughter, and Kade Roman – she was one of the smartest people I had ever met, even when she was a little girl." Max continued, ignoring the thinly-veiled edge to his grandson's voice.

"Okay, I'm sufficiently stumped." Gwen commented, raising her hand, "What's going on here?"

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Chapter up!**

 **Dedicated to Papercrane26, for his persistence.**

 **Please follow, favorite and review!**

 **~ Raven**


	6. CHAPTER 5

_**And For Those Who Want The Truth**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

" _Dr Victor Emilio Validus_ ," the computer narrated, displaying the file of Victor Validus, " _Plumber I.D_." The screen displayed Kade's file next to Victor's, " _Kade Roman. Plumber I.D._ "

Max sat in the chair, glasses perched on his nose, and his two grandchildren on either side of him. Victor Validus was one of the best Plumbers I ever trained; the other, was Kade Roman, but she was only a kid. We stopped more than our share of invasions. I trusted Vic with my life. Same for Kade. I wanted to trust the running of this place to him. Until they betrayed me."

"What?" Ben asked, confused.

"They were caught stealing alien technology from our vaults. Tech that they swore they would protect the Earth from. Victor was given a dishonorable discharge, and Kade, she was never a certified Plumber anyway. Her name was wiped from all of the files, except from the ones only I see. Traitors."

"Traitor's daughter left the building, Az did too," Kevin reported, walking into the room.

Gwen waved her hand slightly, "What did they steal?"

"Same stuff Elena and Kade were dealing," Max turned around to eye Ben, "You still think they're the girls you know?"

"Kade is," Ben replied, his voice steady, "They told us the truth about one thing, you lied to us."

"I did that for your own good. You were too young to understand." Max's voice was a low grumble and the Omnitrix-wielder shook his head.

"I still don't understand. You can't judge Elena for what her father did, and you still haven't explained how Kade betrayed you."

"Ben, stay away from them. Kade, especially." Max pleaded, "The Validus family is blacklisted. And Kade, Kade is too unpredictable…too unstable. There can be no interaction with them and the Plumbers."

"That's the way you see it," the brunette boy objected, "The way I see it, some friends are in trouble. And they're the best link we have to those chips and the freak controlling them. A whole lot more people could end up in trouble besides Kade, Elena and her father."

Max jabbed a finger at the computer, "That's why we are going to analyze those chips and take care of this crisis by the book! I am not going to boot up this whole operation on the word of those two girls." Ben began to walk away, and Max frowned. "Ben. That is my decision!"

"Well, it's the wrong decision."

"I order you to stay away from Kade." Max knew that Ben cared a lot more for Kade than he did for Elena, and he also knew that if anyone was going to hurt Ben, it would be Kade, accidently or not.

Ben swallowed, knowing exactly what he was doing, how it would affect the others, "Sorry, Max, I'm not following that order."

"Ben!" Gwen called, walking around the desk to her cousin, "You can't break Plumbers ranks!" When Ben gave no indication of backing down, Gwen turned to Max, "Max, don't let him do this."

Max leant heavily on the desk. "It's not up to me. He's made his choice."

Ben glanced at Kevin, "Kev?"

Kevin frowned slightly. Kade was his best friend, the only one that was there for him for a while, and he really wanted to help her. But if Kade Roman, the best analyst the Plumbers had ever seen, a great Plumber and an even better Anodite, had been kicked out, then he really didn't want to see what would happen to a former-criminal half-Osmosian. "Somebody's gotta stay here and look after the old man."

"Kevin! Stop him!" Gwen cried, but Kevin only shook his head.

"Don't worry," Ben told her, "I can handle myself." Ben walked away, leaving Gwen to look between her grandfather and boyfriend incredulously.

 **XXXXX**

Kade's dark blue bike roared around the corner, quite a good distance in front of herself and Elena. She was speeding down the road, trying hard not to turn around and go back to the Plumbers base, for the sole purpose of punching Max in the face. Kade turned to the side swiftly, barely stopping the bike from hitting Ben, who was clad in his usual green '10' jacket and on his own bike. Kade pulled her helmet off as Ben pulled his own off, sporting a terrific case of helmet hair.

"What do you want?" Kade snapped, her blue hair flying near her face. The three-quarter Anodite hadn't bothered to set the spell again and Ben's breath hitched as his green eyes met Kade's spectacular blue ones.

"The same thing as you…I wanna help find Elena's father and your possession." Ben told Kade, who looked at him dubiously, as Elena pulled up next to them and removed her helmet.

"What about your Gramps?" Elena asked, knowing full-well that Max wouldn't support Ben helping them.

"Not too thrilled about it," Ben commented with a half-smile.

"And you're helping us anyway?" Kade asked, leaning forward on her bike. Ben shrugged. Swiftly, Kade grabbed Ben's wrist, feeling the erratic pulse there and used her powers. _He's telling the truth_. Kade nodded at Elena.

Elena gave Ben's bike an appraising look, "Nice bike."

"It's Max's really. Can't get any more angry at me than he already is."

"I'm sorry," Elena apologized, "That's our fault."

Ben looked Elena, before locking eyes with Kade for a long moment.

"Nah, it's his." He glanced back at Elena after a moment, who pursed her lips. "Let's find your dad. First stop…wherever you got your hands on those chips."

Kade grinned roguishly, "Got big or go home, I suppose." The three riders put their helmets back on and rode off. First stop…Victor's lab.

 **XXXXX**

Kevin sat at his computer, feet propped on the desk. He was typing quickly, headphones in, as Gwen walked into the room, calling, "Grandpa?" Gwen rolled her eyes at the sight of Kevin and plopped down next to him and pulled out an earbud, putting it in her own ear, "Am I interrupting something?"

"Find your wayward cousin?" Kevin asked, answering Gwen's question with one of his own.

"He'll be back…alone, hopefully. Wait, no, I don't mind if Kade comes back. Just not Elena…" Kevin pulled out the earphone.

"Yeah, so what's the 411 on those two? Elena and Ben, and Kade and Ben?"

Gwen cringed with a smile, "Elena was Ben's first crush…and Kade and Ben were inseparable." Kevin laid his head on Gwen's arm, listening intently as he typed. "Elena was the only girl on Ben's soccer team in middle school, and Ben couldn't kick a ball in a straight line when she was around. He was really bummed after she moved away."

"Great, now its puppy love," Kevin grinned and Gwen nodded.

"Cousin Ben is growing up. It had to happen sometime."

Kevin's grin widened, "Yeah, I'll believe it when I see it. What about Az?"

"Kade…Kade was my best friend and we grew up together. We studied together and had sleepovers." Gwen smiled, remembering when they were kids, "She taught Ben how to use the Omnitrix and at first, she was homeschooled here, in the base. But then she came to school, and Ben was always there. Kade helped him with schoolwork and Ben protected Kade from the bullies…she was a nerd…" Kevin grinned at that, Kade was a genius, but she hid it behind sarcasm and pessimistic attitude. "But then she turned thirteen and then suddenly the bullies weren't teasing her, they were drooling over her…but she never saw them. I think she only saw Ben." Gwen frowned suddenly, realising something, and then her eyes and smile brightened. "Actually…Kade was always at Ben's soccer training and games, she'd study there and they'd walk home afterwards. Maybe it wasn't Elena, maybe it was Kade?"

Kevin hummed in approval, "Az is my best friend and I love her like a sister, she'd be great for Benji. Something about Elena is just—" Kevin was cut off as the computer spoke.

" _Invalid codec. Access to mainframe denied._ "

"Kev, what are you doing in Max's office," Gwen questioned slowly.

Kevin let out a breath and sat forward in the chair, "I wanted to know what intel we already had on those chips. If Validus and Kade took them from the vault, they should be in the system."

"And?" Gwen asked expectantly, her hand pressed to her throat as she leant against the desk.

"All the files are sealed."

"Well, then we should just ask Max." Gwen suggested and Kevin looked at his girlfriend sharply.

"I tried that. He wasn't open for discussion."

Gwen waved a finger. "So you just came in here and opened up his personal files?" Kevin had the decency to look guilty before he heard the next words out of goody-two-shoes Gwendolyn Tennyson's mouth, "What did they say?"

"They're sort of locked," Kevin shrugged. "I could figure out the password?"

Gwen blinked slowly, "That would be a huge violation of trust."

"And regulations," Kevin agreed, "Well, I guess Ben is really on his own this time." Kevin leant back in the chair, hands behind his head, "I'm sure he'll be fine. I mean, he's all grown up now and everything."

Gwen was silent for a moment, "Break the code."

Kevin grinned, and moved forward and typed quickly. He grinned at Gwen, the computer running codes and informing them, " _Now implementing search for variable internodes based on random numerical ciphers_."

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **I love the relationship Gwen and Kevin have, it's amazing.**

 **Thank you for reading, please favorite, follow and review.**

 **~ Raven**


	7. CHAPTER 6

_**As Dark As The Midnight Sky**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

 _"_ _It's really simple! Tell me! Come on, Kade, what's your favourite colour?"_

 _At eleven years old, Kade Roman could easily say that Benjamin Kirby Tennyson was easily the most annoying person she had ever met. Even on Anodyne, where her mother freaked out if Kade was even gone for a_ second _, Kade had felt more at ease. After pestering her for an hour, Kade had cracked and answered Ben's previous question of her age._

 _Ben was ten, and had recently 'accidently' gotten the Omnitrix stuck to him. How a device of unimaginable power had managed to get saddled with – and she said the_ watch _was the poor thing, not the boy attached to it – a ten-year-old, Kade didn't know._

 _Why her father had thought that his daughter was a good person to teach the Tennyson boy about the Omnitrix was even more beyond Kade's comprehension._

 _"_ _Tennyson?" This caught Ben's attention and the black-haired girl met his green gaze evenly, "Shut. Up."_

 _Gwen Tennyson, the less annoying cousin of Ben – at least in Kade's opinion – burst out into laughter, causing a slight smile flicker onto Kade's face. But it was gone in a second._

 _"_ _Dweeb!"_

 _"_ _Doofus!"_

 **XXXXX**

 _Kade was twelve, and was currently hiding in the library. After Ben had discovered the Omnitrix, of course, after the initial bumps, Kade, Gwen and Ben had become extremely close friends. Though, as welcoming as the Tennyson's were, Bellwood High was not very welcoming at all._

 _"_ _Kade! There you are," Kade glanced up sharply at Ben who had walked towards her. "I was looking for you everywhere."_

 _Tears welled in Kade's eyes, "Why would you be looking for a 'know-it-all, homeless loser' like me?" Kade was close to being a genius, but as Gwen and Ben were a year younger than her, she had been placed in their year-level to protect them, something that the girls and boys in her classes refused to let her forget._

 _Ben was beside Kade in a second, "Who said that?" When he received no response, the Omnitrix-wielder wrapped an arm around her, "Kadey, you're amazing. You're super-smart, and you have an awesome personality. And you live in the Plumbers base, and at my house. You have a home."_

 _The brown-eyed girl rubbed her eyes, and sighed. "I know, I'm sorry. I'm just…" Kade frowned slightly. How could you explain to one of your closest friends that you're a creature from an alien planet? "I'm just homesick."_

 _The bell rang, signaling the start of class and Kade kissed Ben's cheek lightly, pulling him up from his seat. "Thank you, Ben, you're a great friend. Come on, let's go to class."_

 _With her head turned away from him, Kade didn't see the deep blush staining Ben's cheeks._

 **XXXXX**

 _"_ _Don't be mad, Ben! Please! I just lost my father, I can't lose you too!" Kade's statement made Ben stop his stomp down the hall._

 _"_ _How can I not be mad? Kade, you're an_ alien _! And you didn't tell me, until now! I turn into aliens, did you think I would be scared of you!?" Ben yelled back at his friend, trying not to notice the pained look on the girl's face. Kade had just lost her father on a Plumbers mission and had taken to spending nights at either Ben or Gwen's house. The nightmares kept her awake._

 _"_ _Ben…" Kade grabbed the Tennyson boy's hands, surprised that he let her, "Benny, you're my best friend. It was to protect you. I care about you and Gwen far too much to let anything happen to you, and I would do anything to make sure that it isn't_ me _or my powers that hurts you. I wouldn't be able to live with myself. So please, let me explain."_

 _The alien girl tugged Ben down to sit beside her on the floor. She conjured a small mana orb, completely capturing Ben's attention. The orb shifted, molding to appear almost like a planet. "I'm an Anodite, from the planet Anodyne. We are creatures of mana, pure energy…"_

 _And so the Anodite and Omnitrix-wielder sat beside each other for hours, the Anodite telling the human boy all about her powers and her upbringing._

 **XXXXX**

 _Thirteen-year-old Kade Roman tried to ignore the wolf-whistles. She was pressed close to Ben, who had his arm wrapped around her shoulders. Her booted feet scuffed slightly as she tugged Ben to a stop._

 _"_ _This…was a bad idea." Ben caught Kade's muffled words in his shoulder and looked down slightly at her. The dark-blue skater skirt Kade was wearing looked gorgeous on her, the black crop top accentuated her figure and the black waterfall cardigan was wrapped tightly around her._

 _"_ _You look great," Ben complimented with a smile and her fingers immediately drifted to the pendant around her throat. It was dark-blue, shaped like a teardrop and the top was wrapped with filigree-type metal. Ben had gifted it to Kade on her birthday and she always grabbed it when she was stressed or upset._

 _Kade smiled widely at Ben, showing off naturally-straight pearly-whites and the two continued onto their class. With Kade's hand in his, Ben had no trouble ignoring the glares he was receiving from the boys who used to bully his best friend._

 _"_ _Are we still on for this afternoon?" Kade asked, looking ahead. Ben's cheeks burned, the question sounding an awful lot like a date. "To study?" The Roman girl clarified when the Tennyson boy didn't reply. She cared for him a lot, but she knew that there was a high chance Ben felt nothing for her in return._

 _Ben's grip on her hand tightened slightly, a grin tugging at his lips, "Of course, Kade."_

 **XXXXX**

 _Gwen cheered beside Kade, watching her cousin play soccer. Ben was good, but since the addition of Elena Validus to the team, Ben had become less talented as time went by. Kade was adamant it was due to Elena's prescence, something that Kade had confessed to Gwen at their most recent sleepover._

 _"_ _He likes you, you know?" Gwen questioned, making Kade look at her. With Kade's eyes on Gwen, the young Anodite didn't see Ben's gaze on her from the field._

 _Kade scoffed, "He can't kick a ball in a straight line when Elena's around." Her fingers moved to the necklace she always wore under her shirt, "I'm nothing compared to her. She's pretty and good at sport…and I'm…not."_

 _Gwen raised a brow. Kade's intelligence rivalled anyone's, she knew heaps about the Plumbers, and space, and just about everything else. She could throw_ pure energy _, she was pretty and kind, and treated everyone nicely. Kade's eyes were back on the field. Ben waved up at the bleachers, in the general direction of them both, but Gwen knew the wave was for Kade._

 _"_ _Oh, Kade." Gwen muttered, smiling sadly at the fourteen-year-old beside her, "You really don't see it do you?"_

 **XXXXX**

 _Kade looked mournfully at the Tennyson household, a bag in hand. Elena and Victor Validus were already in the car across the street. She was leaving; Kade was leaving everything she knew. The tears slipped down her cheeks before she could stop them._

 _"_ _Dark blue," Kade spoke sadly, staring at Ben's house, remembering the question Ben had asked her when he was ten and she had eleven, "As dark as the midnight sky."_

 _Kade grabbed her bags and walked over to the car, slipping into the backseat next to Elena. The young Anodite's shaky fingers wrapped around the only thing that could bring her comfort now – her precious necklace – as the car moved away, away from Bellwood. Kade lowered her lips to her dark-blue necklace and sobbed. Kade didn't feel Elena's hand grabbing hers, she only felt the crushing sadness that she was leaving the only family she had ever known._

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **This is just a bit of background information about Kade, and how she was before she left the Plumbers.**

 **Enjoy, and please: favorite, follow and review.**

 **~ Raven**


	8. CHAPTER 7

_**More Unanswered Questions And More Leads**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

Ben, Elena and Kade zoomed down the streets on their bikes, Kade a few meters in front of both her friends. The riders in leather – blue, green and red – rode for a long time, unhindered down the highways before they pulled up in front of Victor's lab. The trio turned off their bikes and removed their helmets.

"My dad started acting really weird a couple months ago. I followed him one night to this place." Elena informed Ben as Kade stripped off her leather jacket.

Ben looked around, "Well, hanging out around here certainly classifies as weird."

Both Elena and Ben turned to look at the girl, who was pulling holstered knives out and was examining the blades. Feeling their stares, Kade glanced up.

"What?" Kade raised her brows, placed the knives back at her waist and pulled off her fingerless leather gloves. She threw her jacket back on, but left it unzipped over her black tank-top, and swung her leg off the bike. "Let's go." Kade pushed the sleeves of her jacket up and stalked off, up to the building.

Ben and Elena exchanged looks. Ben unzipped his jacket, and both teenagers left their helmets on their bikes, and followed after their friend.

 **XXXXX**

The trio headed up to the front door of the building, and Kade tensed slightly. Something wasn't…right, she could feel it, but the girl had no idea why it wasn't. Ben furrowed his brows as he looked at Kade, and moved an old desk chair that was blocking their path to the door. The Omnitrix-wielder raised a questioning brow, and Kade responded with a shrug and threw open the door.

The building was as disgusting as Kade remembered it, and Ben stopped beside her. He grinned, "What was he doing, racing cockroaches?"

"He has a laboratory set up," Elena instructed the two. "Whatever he was working on, he didn't want me involved. Then he stopped coming home at all."

Kade sent her friend a sad look, as did Ben, and the boy followed after the girl in red. Ben, Elena and Kade walked up towards the stairs, but Kade stopped slightly. Confusion was etched on her face and she went to light up her hand with mana.

"Come on," Elena called, and Kade paused, sighing, before hurrying after her friends.

 **XXXXX**

Ben and Elena pushed open the double doors to Victor's lab, revealing a room strewn with pages full of notes and scribbles, and science equipment. Kade immediately hurried forward towards the microscopes and a stack of paper.

"What was he doing here?" The brunette boy glanced around.

Kade glanced up, "He was studying the chips." She flipped through some pages, skimming the words, before she crumpled the paper up and let it drop onto the floor. "Because of my work on the nano-chips, Victor asked me to help him. I came here a few times and he made me promise not to tell Elena. And then, he stopped asking me to come and then stopped coming home, so I _had_ to tell Elena."

Elena walked towards the desk, as did Ben and the young man commented, "Boy, when your dad takes up a hobby, he doesn't mess around."

"Oh, no!" Kade suddenly gasped and moved to a tiny, almost unnoticeable, crack in the wall. She pushed the crack and it seemed to swing open, having been a metal door attached to the wall. Inside, sat a small book. It was important to Kade, filled with photos and letters from her mother. The girl let out a sigh of relief and waved a glowing palm over the leather-bound book. The book glowed briefly before it lay still in her hand. Turning to see confused looks, Kade explained, "This book is filled with spells and notes to secret passages. And…all my work on the nano-chips."

Suddenly, Kade shook her head and spun in a circle, surveying the room. Elena moved away from the notes she was reading as well, "Someone's been here…taking things." The two girls strode over to the shelving and began to move the boxes.

Ben grinned slightly at Kade and continued to read the sheet in his hands. At Ben's look of worry, Kade moved to stand beside him, reading as well. The green-leather wearing man looked at Kade, "Or looking for things. Kade, did Victor ever show you what he wrote down about the chips?" Kade shook her head, "Elena, these notes, he wasn't studying the chips, he was upgrading, developing them."

"And I _helped_ him," Kade muttered sadly, tracing her fingers over the page.

"Look at this," Ben continued, staring at all the pages with scribbled notes on them, "Your dad was crazy."

"You're wrong." Elena denied, and stared at her two friends, a distraught-Kade now pressed into Ben's side, who had wrapped his arm around her. "He's a brilliant man, he just became possessed with his work."

The Anodite let out a choked laugh, one that was humorless, "Yes, Elena. He did become _possessed_ by his work."

"Why?" Ben asked cautiously, his arm tightening around Kade's shoulders. He was worried for her; Kade was taking this a lot harder than Elena seemed to be, but then again, Elena hadn't worked on the chips like Kade had.

"He said these things posed some sort of threat," Elena told Ben, trying to ignore how comfortable Kade and Ben looked together. "The Plumbers didn't believe him, so he and Kade took them. Now they won't lift a finger to help us."

"And Max is kind of a stickler about the Plumber's rulebook." Kade snorted at that. Ben was holding a picture of Elena and Victor. Both looked extremely happy and the photo was obviously taken by someone else who they trusted and made them happy – Kade.

"Just a stickler? He tried to remove all of my Anodite powers when I took the chips," Ben looked down at Kade in horror, who, with her head pressed into his shoulder, didn't see the look and continued. "I wish we didn't. If we hadn't then they'd be dealing with this, not us."

Elena spoke up from her crouched position near the ground, "This is where I found those chips in storage containers." The Validus girl moved a computer chip and page slightly before she got back up. "They were all over the place."

Frowning, Kade pushed away from Ben slightly, muttering a quiet, "Be right back," before she wandered closer to the doors. Something was wrong.

Ben picked up a Ship-It order form and showed it to Elena, "Looks like your dad had business with Ship-It. You think he could have sent the chips somewhere?" Elena shrugged, "Well, whoever has your dad wanted those chips." Ben shoved the form into his pocket, before realising something, "The freak from the drop. Do you or Kade know who that is?"

Elena stared at Ben with innocent eyes and shook her head, "I have no idea. I just want my father back, Ben."

"We'll get him. I promise."

Kade shook her head, hands raised and glowing. Energy signatures were getting closer to them…but every time Kade locked on one, it was like the signature suddenly died. Ben and Elena broke their gaze when they heard a scream – Kade's – and looked up to see an assortment of odd people. A child stood in front of the group, looking like she had just come from bed and a man in a blue t-shirt had a tight grip on Kade's upper arm and a hand clamped over her mouth.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Ben's eyes flashed over to Kade, "Why don't you let her go?"

A man in a suit replied, his voice dull, "We want to help you."

Kade winced as the grip tightened and Ben's eyes widened at seeing her in pain, "No thanks, we're good. Just browsing." The boy looked over at the person who was dressed in nurse's scrubs and noticed their eyes all flashing, "Whoa, look at their eyes."

Elena lifted up the lamp on the desk, shining it on the people. Little nano-chips moved under their skin. "It's not just their eyes. Look, the chips."

Kade began to wriggle, trying to get the man to release his hold. Finally, giving up on forcing him to let go the 'normal way,' her eyes flashed dark blue and the man let go as a mana whip threw his hand back. "Drones!" Kade cried out, moving towards the pair as soon as she was let go, and Ben and Elena's eyes widened. "They're infected. They're being controlled."

Ben wrapped an arm around Kade again as they watched the nurse speak. "We want you to meet the queen."

"I've met a few queens. Not a fan." Kade commented and Ben raised a sarcastic brow, adding, "And we would love to do that, but all the bowing and curtsying, I don't think so." Without another word, the drones moved forward, closing in on them. "There's too many of 'em, like they were expecting us…like this is a trap."

Ben looked at Elena, who shook her head, "No, I swear it!"

"Looks like we could use some help," Ben said, beginning to fiddle with the Omnitrix which only sparked in response. "From a static squiggly blob? Not good."

"I think so too." Swiftly, the blue-haired girl raised her hands and a wall of mana pushed the drones back. "Go!" Kade yelled at the two and Elena pointed to the right.

"Fire escape! Run!" Elena ran forward, completely leaving Kade, who glared at her. Ben grabbed Kade's hand and pulled her after him and as soon as she lowered her hands, the mana-wall disappeared, leaving the drones free to chase after them.

Elena pushed open the fire escape door, only to be met with another drone. "Ben!" Elena cried, and the hero promptly punched the man in the face. He fell over the stair railing to the ground quickly and the three teenagers followed after him, taking the stairs instead. The drones trailed after them – at a much slower pace – and Kade looked around to see nano-chip-infected people coming out of almost every door in the street.

"No!" Elena called, distressed, "What do we do?"

Kade loved Elena, she really did; the girl was one of her closest friends. But she really needed to start doing things for herself.

"Okay, I think I got it," Ben told them, twisting the dial on the Omnitrix. "So if these chips are actually alive, like some form of techno-organic interface, then the watch must be in overdrive to scan 'em."

"Science lesson later, Ben!" Kade yelled at the boy, already using her mana to blast drones back, just as Elena asked, "Can we have this pop quiz another time?"

"Maybe I can redirect the back at the chips, if I can just boost the power." Ben mused, turning the watch.

Kade shot him a glare as she threw a man into a garden without looking at him as she did it, "Just get on with it!"

"I got it!" Ben retorted as a swirling gold energy field shot from the Omnitrix and hurled all the drones back. "Hey, not bad." Ben half-congratulated himself, but more drones walked towards them.

"Not great either. Come on, let's go!" Elena responded, already getting onto her bike and pulling on her helmet.

Ben, Kade and Elena started to ride off, Elena and Ben heading to the left but Kade headed to the right. She lifted her arms, letting go of her bike handles for a brief minute and sent out a pulse of mana in the shape of a hoop. The mana knocked quite a few drones over, but sent Kade's bike skidding to the ground, throwing her off.

Kade huffed and pushed herself up, quickly getting on the back of Ben's bike when he called, "Kade, get on!"

The two bikes drove away rapidly and Kade pushed herself up from her seat to punch a man in the face, the man having been the one who had grabbed her back in Victor's lab. The speed and danger loving Anodite wrapped one arm securely around Ben's waist and high-fived Elena, who remained on her bike. Twisting, Kade held a hand out and summoned her mana. Her beautiful, dark blue bike began to disappear, reverting back into the mana that it once was and returned to Kade, making her feel light and full of energy. Kade laughed, and twisted back around pressing her helmeted head to Ben's back and twined both her arms around the lean boy's waist. Ben glanced over his shoulder and he laughed along with his Kade.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Chapter 7 done and dusted.**

 **Too mushy? Be honest.**

 **Please favorite, follow and review.**

 **~ Raven**


	9. CHAPTER 8

_**When Nano-Chips Strike Back**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

A good distance away, Ben and Elena stopped their bikes. Kade pulled off her helmet and tossed her midnight-blue hair back. "Thanks," Kade told Ben, who turned to look at her, "You're pretty good on this thing."

"And you can hold your own in a fight," Ben grinned and Kade moved forward to place a soft, lingering kiss against the hero's cheek. She slowly moved away.

Ben and Kade stared at each other, almost refusing to look away, but were interrupted by Elena clearing her throat. An annoyed look sat on her face and she asked, "So what do we do now?"

"Visit the shipment center and find out what your dad was up to." Ben glanced at Elena, "Maybe even find your dad."

Elena pursed her lips, "Whatever he sent is long gone now."

"Are you sure about that?" Ben pulled out the Ship-It form and held it up at Elena, "This was dated today. I though you said he's been missing for weeks."

"He has," Elena protested and exchanged a quick, but worried, glance with Kade. "You believe me don't you?"

Ben didn't answer, instead moving to put his helmet back on, "I believe…we'll find something at Ship-it."

Elena didn't look satisfied with the answer, but started the engine to her bike. Kade, who had been silent throughout the conversation, blinked the dark-blue mana from her eyes and put her own helmet on.

Ship-It did have the answer, just probably one they didn't want.

 **XXXXX**

" _Who were you going to sell the chips to, Victor?_ "

" _I keep telling you…I had to take them, it was for research. Those chips, they're a threat._ " Kevin and Gwen looked away from the screen, and glanced at each other. The recording of Victor Validus' interrogation was…less than invigorating, but they needed answers. " _They're planning something_."

Max refused to believe it, " _That's a lie! They're dead! The lab boys said they're nothing but alien tech, no threat at all._ "

" _And what about what_ Kade _says? Do you not believe her?_ "

Kade was the best analyst the Plumbers ever had, one of their smartest – and best – recruits and Gwen watched the old video with great interest. Max ignored the question entirely, " _Who's your buyer?_ "

" _The hive, they want us! They're coming for us, Max! They're coming for us all! I'm telling you the truth, Max!_ "

" _You're going to have to do better than that, Victor._ " Max leaned forward, his face holding an almost menacing quality, " _I know you._ "

Kevin reached out and stopped the video and faced Gwen, "Gramps has a real bedside manner there, Gwen." His jaw set and he furrowed his brow, "Az's video was worse, he made her cry."

"Validus was like, his prized pupil. And Kade was like a granddaughter to him. I think that Max really felt their betrayal. I wonder if…" Gwen trailed off, but Kevin was already nodding, catching her train of thought.

"You think Max's getting stabbed in the back is keeping him from seeing straight?"

Gwen titled her head and Kevin nodded slowly, "That would make…"

"Ben right."

"And that's a scary thought," Kevin agreed, "And not just because I hate it when he's right."

"So, what if this loony isn't so loony? What if the chips weren't dead? Kade could still sense they weren't inert."

"Like, some species of insects that can remain dormant for decades." At Gwen's raised eyebrows, Kevin elaborated, "I learnt that watching The Science Channel." Kevin didn't mention that Kade had been the one to force him into watching it.

"Your depth of knowledge astounds," Gwen commented lightly.

" _Now commencing thermal and spatial analysis of all targets._ "

Gwen glanced at Kevin, "Have any luck getting a trace on their energy signature?"

"Your wish was my…headache inducing project," Kevin remarked, "Wish Az was here, would've been done sooner."

The dark-haired boy tapped at the keys and the computer stated, " _Targets identified. Absolute locations displayed in a radial curve, commencing at thirty-eight degrees latitude…_ "

"The chips are showing up in a one-hundred-mile radius."

" _Ninety-six degrees longitude._ "

"Kevin!" Gwen exclaimed, "You did it!" The red-head moved forward to kiss her boyfriend's cheek before she tugged the keyboard towards her.

"The cheek?" Kevin asked with a smirk, "I find all the big bad alien chips, and I get is a kiss on the cheek?"

Gwen shook her head with a giggle, before focusing back on the chips, "Greatest concentration of chips…is clustered here." The screen showed an image of the Ship-It distribution center. "It's the Ship-It distribution center. It's only about an hour from here." Kevin looked at her and Gwen smiled, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"That we're going against orders and are not better than Ben."

Gwen rolled her eyes, "You had to mention it."

" _Destination of absolute distance of forty-nine-point-eight-seven miles._ "

 **XXXXX**

Kade shook her head almost violently. One arm was curled around Ben's waist as they tore down the street and the pounding in her head was making it difficult to concentrate. _Something's not right_ , Kade thought, scrunching up her eyes and nose. _They couldn't be that stupid, could they? To go and investigate themselves?_

"Are you okay, Kade?" Ben called back to the girl sharing the bike with him. At Kade's shake of her head, Ben stopped the bike on the side of the road.

As soon as the bike pulled over, Kade stumbled off and away, pulling of her helmet quickly. _Gwen. Something's not right with Gwen._ As an Anodite, the Roman girl was able to sense other Anodites near her.

"Kade?" Ben's arm was suddenly around her shoulders and Kade turned into his embrace. Ben frowned, "What's wrong."

The blue-haired girl kept her face hidden for a few moments longer, slowing her breathing down before she pulled away. "I'm fine, but I think some—"

Kade was cut off by Elena. The black-haired had become shorter and snappier with her alien friend and had taken to given her snarky replies as answers, "Are you done hugging now? We have to get to the Ship-It center and find my father, _remember_?"

"We remember," Kade's lips were pursed and she sent a thankful smile towards Ben. Quickly disengaging his arms from around her, Kade walked back over to the bikes.

Ben followed after her, and leant against his bike and pulled out his phone. "The Ship-It office is right up over here."

The boy continued to analyse his phone, trying to ignore how close Elena was leaning to him and glanced up at Kade every moment he could. Kade had begun to breathe heavily again, looking like she was on the verge of a panic attack. "Kade…" The Omnitrix-wielder called, about to ask what was wrong, but paused when he heard a distinct rumbling noise.

"What was that?" Elena asked, having perked up at the sound as well. Kade immediately ran to the railing near the bridge.

"Oh no…" The girl muttered as Ben stood up and told Elena, "The most obnoxious muscle car in the world."

Kade was already running towards them, placing her bike helmet on her head, "Oh God. That feeling – I was right! Gwen and Kevin are in trouble."

Ben nodded, getting on the bike, "We're taking a detour."

 **XXXXX**

"I can't lose 'em!" Kevin yelled, driving his green muscle car recklessly. The trip to the Ship-It center didn't go to plan, and after being taunted by an infected Ship-It clerk and then attacked by a swarm of nano-chips, Kevin and Gwen weren't having the best time.

Gwen cringed in the seat beside him as some of the nano-chips – the chips having shaped themselves into spiked balls – shattered into a fence. The other chips continued to roll after the car and Kevin jerked the wheel, quickly turning into a vacant lot.

"Kevin, no!" Gwen cried suddenly, but it was too late. The spiked groups of nano-chips tore into one of the car's wheels.

Kevin began to lose control of the car, "Hang on!"

The remaining nano-chip orb went under the car, flipping the vehicle upwards. The car rolled in mid-air more than once, before it hit the ground with a crash, and rolled some more. Kevin and Gwen got out of the car, surprisingly unharmed, coughing and wincing.

"Are you okay?" Kevin asked his girlfriend, and the red-head commented, "Yeah. It hurts when I laugh, but I don't think that'll be a problem."

"I don't know who's behind all this," Kevin grumbled, staring at the wreckage of his beautiful car, and his words finished in a shout, "But they're gonna fix my car!"

The two stumbled on the small rocks slightly, and Kevin turned to Gwen, "Think they gave up?"

Gwen looked around, her eyes narrowed, "I don't know. Maybe they just wanted to scare us."

A clanking noise rang out and Kevin looked up, mumbling, "Well, they succeeded."

Above the pair, on the road, a huge ball of nano-chips loomed, nearing the railing. The orb pulsated with light, before it grew spikes, a small set and then another, sharper-looking amount. The nano-chips rolled off the highway and fell to the ground in front of Kevin and Gwen.

The Anodite girl bounced forward, firing one blast of mana at the orb, followed by another blast. Each time, the nano-chips paused for a second before continuing to move forward.

 **XXXXX**

The bikes roared down the street. The pounding in Kade's head was becoming stronger and Elena, from her bike, glanced somewhat worriedly at the girl. The three riders pulled into the lot and Kade vaguely saw Kevin absorb some metal to fight.

Ben fiddled with the Omnitrix, one hand on the handlebars. The young hero pulled off his helmet and threw it aside. Turning slightly, Ben instructed Kade, "You take over."

"Are you crazy!?" Elena cried from their side, but Kade merely nodded and slid forward when Ben hit the Omnitrix and jumped off the bike. The three-quarter-Anodite had complete faith in Ben's ability and watched as he flipped in mid-air and landed as Humungousaur. Humungousaur roared loudly, as Kade and Elena parked their bikes behind Kevin and Gwen. The two gave Elena a look and nodded to Kade, who shifted into her Anodite form.

"Nice timing," Kevin complimented and the blue-bodied girl grinned.

"Thanks, Kev."

Humungousaur strengthened the scales on his new form's arms and Kade flew over to float by the alien's head. The nano-chips rolled forward, and ridges shot up from Humungousaur's spine. The nano-chips seemed to have the same ideas, as the spikes grew longer and sharper. Feeling left-out, Kade shrugged, brightened the glow of her body and summoned mana-orbs to twirl around her lazily in a circle.

Roaring, Humungousaur launched forward and hit the nano-chips. Kade extended her arms, her mana following her movements, the orbs shooting straight into the spiked ball of nano-tech. Humungousaur's strength was unmatched, and he pummeled the nano-tech, causing it to break apart in bursts of light. Humungousaur was literally tearing the nano-tech to shreds and Kade created a shield between the stray nano-chips and her friends. Kevin, Gwen and Elena ran, ducking behind metal barrels, and Kade made herself useful by trapping the nano-tech in mana and causing them to implode.

Some of the chips moved and formed different shapes, a wheel resembling a type of buzz-saw was one of them and Kevin spoke up, "That's kinda whatev."

The nano-chip wheels circled around, slashing at the ground.

"That's kind of a nightmare," Gwen retorted.

Humungousaur turned, and glared and huffed at the nano-tech, which shot itself at him. Kade was preoccupied, trapped under her own mana shield as two nano-tech wheels tried to cut through it. Cracks began to appear, and Kade groaned and pushed more energy into the shield.

The nano-tech fired small chips at Humungousaur, who swung at them, before he ran directly at a wheel. The nano-tech formations broke apart and rained around the young adults as Humungousaur hit them and Kade shot out a beam of mana and destroyed the two wheels targeting her. More nano-tech creations appeared and Kade floated behind the stone wall protecting Kevin, Gwen and Elena, and created another shield in front of them.

"What is this shit!?" Kade cried, exasperated, as she changed back into her human form. "Where are all these nano-chips coming from!?"

Kevin shrugged, and the four stared back over the wall. Humungousaur was swatting at the nano-chip projectiles and seemed to be losing. The hero roared at the chips, but a lone chip found it's mark in his shoulder, causing Humungousaur to fall to one knee. Kade gasped, her hand flying to her mouth, her other hand out, trying to maintain the barrier between her, her friends, and the nano-chips.

The Omnitrix-wielder tore the nano-chip out and ran towards Kevin's car. The chips lost their shape and separated to funnel around Ben.

"It's got Humungousaur!" Elena cried, eyes wide in horror.

Gwen and Kade spoke in unison, "I wouldn't count on it." The girls looked at each other before sharing a smile and turning back to the fight.

The nano-tech formed a solid ball around Humungousaur, who merely jumped out of it, breaking the swarm apart. The nano-chips formed a spiked funnel and Ben picked up Kevin's car.

"Oh no," Kevin groaned, "Don't do what I think you're gonna do."

Humungousaur jumped into the air, hitting the nano-chips with Kevin's car. The tech broke apart, raining down like fireworks and the four teenagers stood up, a look of anger on Kevin's face. The car fell down with the nano-chips – in pieces – and Humungousaur landed and roared in victory.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Quick question:**

 **Is the background info on Kade too jumpy, I mean, have I included enough to enable you to understand who Kade is and where she came from?**

 **~ Raven**


	10. CHAPTER 9

_**Back Where We Are (Not) Welcome**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

"Ben!" Kade yelled, hoping that the boy was okay, and ran out to meet Ben, who was changing back to his regular form and was walking through the smoke. Elena and Gwen followed after her, as did Kevin, albeit, Kevin walked more slowly and with more attitude.

Ben walked out of the smoke, looking a bit worse for wear and Kade threw herself into his arms. The boy in the green jacket hugged her back, his arms wrapped tight around her and his face buried in her hair.

The Tennyson boy heard Kade's sigh of relief, which was quickly followed by, "If you _ever_ scare me like that, I'm gonna fire mana at you."

"I promise I won't," Ben chuckled, tightening his hold on Kade.

"That was so cool," Elena praised as she stopped in front of the hugging pair with Gwen. The Tennyson girl was smiling fondly at Ben and Kade, but Elena's face was twisted into a scowl.

"Are you okay, Ben?" Gwen asked and Ben barely nodded, his face still in Kade's dark blue hair.

"You destroyed my car!" Kevin accused as soon as he reached the group, and with a huff, pulled Kade out of Ben's grasp. "Enough, Az. We get it – you two love each other."

Kade blushed hotly before she grinned sheepishly at her best friend and questioned, "What were you doing here?"

"Well," Kevin replied, his tone snarky, "I had a sudden urge to ship something overnight, and suddenly we're up to our neck in biker babe and your girlfriend's chips."

Elena and Ben exchanged a look as Gwen smirked. Kevin had stopped calling Elena Ben's 'girlfriend' and had instead taken to calling her 'biker babe.' And if Elena was 'biker babe'…that made Kade Ben's 'girlfriend.' Kade was blushing again, something rare for her, and Gwen knew that out of the trio, she was the only one that caught the change.

"And that's right about the time you came along," Kevin continued to rant, "And _annihilated_ my car!"

Gwen let out a breath and rolled her eyes, as Elena protested, "Those chips aren't ours! We were trying to warn you!"

"Thanks," Kevin remarked, the snarky tone still in his voice and his gaze didn't leave Elena's, as in all truth, he didn't really blame Kade, "I'll consider myself warned."

Gwen moved her crossed arms, letting them hang at her sides, "They're more than autonomous tech. We found a hive of them at the Ship-It office, and they've infected the clerk…absorbed him."

"Are you okay?" Kade asked, and Gwen nodded and smiled at her thoughtfulness. Kade was back beside Ben, and apparently, unconsciously, Ben had wrapped his arm around her waist protectively.

"Yeah, we ran into his extended family and they wanted to adopt us." Ben rubbed at the shoulder of the arm wrapped around Kade's waist in discomfort and the girl immediately lifted a glowing hand to alleviate the pain.

"No kidding. They must have analysed the threat and evolved."

"They're clearly a highly adaptive species. Kade?" Ben asked, looking down at the girl. Kade shook her head slowly, keeping her hand at his shoulder.

"When I worked with they were…dead, essentially." The blue haired and eyed girl bit her lip, "They _seemed_ like they could change, but they needed to be instructed to. By the queen."

"And it looks like they still have some life left in them," Elena added.

"We've gotta get some of these active chips back to the lab right away," Gwen agreed and Kade captured a small amount in a mana cube.

"Got 'em. I can run an analysis, Gwen can help me."

"Maybe they can give us a clue about what happened to my father," Elena pressed, refusing to let the subject of her father drop.

Kade rolled her eyes, getting annoyed by Elena and Kevin stalked back over to the small group. "Maybe we'll give you a call because you're not coming with us. You're trouble in a jug. Az's welcome, you're not."

Kade lifted a brow at that, and Elena frowned, beginning to dislike her friend, "Oh, I'm coming with you, all right."

"Ben," Gwen turned to look at her cousin, "Didn't Elena just lead you into a nest of techno-organic zombies?"

The brunette boy took one look at Kade's pleading face and couldn't say 'no' to her. "She's coming. One…she's in too much danger on her own now. And two…" Elena looked at Ben, hopeful that he wanted her around just for the sake of it. "Kade and I trust her."

Elena frowned, it was always 'Kade this,' 'Kade that.' Gwen opened her mouth, about to speak, but Kade reached out and grabbed her hand. "Please."

Gwen conceded and Kevin turned around slightly. Elena reached for the zip of her pocket and withdrew a small slip of paper. "What's that?" Gwen asked as Kevin snatched it.

"A quick and trusty cab service." Ben and Elena began to walk off, leaving Kade, Gwen and Kevin.

The red-head Anodite scuffed the ground with her boot and Kade scoffed lightly and wrapped her arms around the couple, leading them off.

"I'd rather fight those chips again."

 **XXXXX**

All around the globe, the nano-tech was attacking people, and the Plumbers were calling in for help. Ben ran into the Command Center beside Kade, the two having developed the habit of immediately gravitating to each other. The other three teenagers had notice this; Gwen was pleased, Kevin was protective and Elena seemed to hate it.

"Where in the Sam Hill has everybody been?" Max asked gruffly as he glimpsed his grandson and the blue-haired girl run up to him. "I'm getting reports on alien activity from installed Plumbers all over the globe!"

"Max, I…" Ben started, but Max quickly cut him off.

"We can settle our problems later," Max instructed the boy, glancing quickly to Kade who had put her hand in Ben's for support, before pointing at Kade and Elena. "And they stay in the brig."

"Like Hell—" Kade began to protest. Ben stopped her with a squeeze of her hand, "It's the chips…Validus' chips."

Max pointed at Elena harshly, "She told you that?"

"It's true," Gwen added, walking into the room with Kevin, "The chips Validus and Kade stole have become active."

Kade looked affronted at 'stole' and stated, "I _borrowed_ them."

"Very active," Kevin joined into the conversation and winked at Kade. Whenever they stole things together, years ago, they said that they 'borrowed' them.

"I hate to say it, Max," The Roman girl told the older man as she sat in a desk chair and smirked, "But, I told you so."

Max couldn't find it in him to snap at the girl, because in truth: Max missed her more than he liked to admit.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Chapter 9 already.**

 **Please favorite, follow and review.**

 **~ Raven**


	11. CHAPTER 10

**_Let's Start Shooting_**

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

Max held a nano-chip under the high-tech microscope with a pair of tweezers. Kade was floating in mid-air, eyes closed and sitting cross-legged, behind him, glowing palms outstretched towards the nano-chip in the orb of mana. Kade's mana had strengthened to an extreme amount over the years, and she used them to her advantage every chance she got.

"These things were nothing more than extraterrestrial hardware." Max stated, turning back to look at the group. "This is impossible."

Kade scoffed, opening one glowing eye. "This isn't impossible, you just didn't want to see it. Victor told you – I told you, but you didn't see past your own ego!"

Ben, from his seat, quickly grabbed Kade's hand, dragging her down back to the ground and into his lap to stop her from snapping more at his grandfather, "They also have a nasty habit of burrowing into people and taking over their minds."

"Oh, but don't worry Max. That's just what _hardware_ does," Kade sneered and let her head drop onto the brunette boy's shoulder with a controlled sigh. The young Anodite had to have extreme control over her emotion, or her mana would lash out in anger-fueled bursts. The blue glow to her eyes diminished, leaving her deep blue irises to peruse the room with a glare. Max always brought out the 'best' in Kade, even now at seventeen years old.

Max turned back to the microscope, ignoring the young Roman girl completely. "They have an unusual energy signature. Can you use that to pinpoint it?" Max's question was aimed at Kevin, who immediately began typing.

"Already done."

" _Targets reanalyzed,_ " the computer system told the team, " _Absolute locations appear in a radial curve_. _Targets are experiencing exponential growth_ _at an absolute rate of ten thousand to one on an ascendant curve._ "

"Oh, crap." Kade bluntly said, lifting her head off Ben's shoulder to gaze at the screen. Something…or someone…was breeding the chips at an increased rate and Kade had a sneaking suspicion she knew who it was. The dark-blue-haired girl kept her mouth shut – what the Plumbers didn't know wouldn't necessarily hurt them.

"That's no one-hundred mile radius," Kevin stated, his eyes as wide as Kade's.

Kade nodded slowly as Ben agreed, "Millions of 'em"

"And spreading at an increased rate," Gwen added, her fingers remaining on the keys. Elena stood behind Ben and Kade in their shared desk chair, arms crossed in an annoyed manner.

"So in other words, they are a threat, just like my father said."

The last part was aimed at Max, and the old man argued back, "Those things were not alive three years ago—"

"Uh…" Kade interrupted, fingers twitching in anger, "Yes, they were."

"—your father and Kade's tinkering probably activated 'em somehow."

"Uh…" The blue-haired girl raised a brow, ignoring Ben's chuckling. " _Insulting_."

"—Now they're a threat to the entire world. And Kade, would you stop interrupting me!"

"You're wrong," Elena replied like a know-it-all and Kade's frowned at that. What did Elena know about the chips? "They were hibernating. Just ask your know-it-all granddaughter."

Kade's frown deepened even further, pushing herself out of the chair and leaning against Gwen's chair instead. Ben got up and Gwen turned to look steadily at the dark-haired Validus girl. The blue-eyed Anodite snorted lightly and mouthed to Gwen, ' _Look who's talking_.'

Gwen cracked a grin at that and Kade lifted a brow at Elena, "Just because your top says 'naughty' and 'nice,' doesn't mean you can add 'bit—"

"Knock it off, both of you," Ben commented, as he clapped a hand over Kade's mouth. "Let's work on a solution, not blame."

The blue-haired girl pried the brunette boy's hand off her mouth and winked at Kevin, who was messing around with a gun. "Kevin has the right idea."

Kade was ignored by everyone but the Osmosian, who grinned in response. Kade was a little bit aggressive and was prone to making rash, rage-fueled decisions.

"Well…" Gwen began, analysing the information on the screens, "At least we know where they are."

"Well, what are we waiting for, let's start shooting." Kevin stood up with the gun, loading the weapon.

Elena didn't seem happy with that plan, "What about the people who are already infected?"

"If it's between me and a Ship-It clerk," Kade scoffed at that, "I'm gonna pick me."

"No, Kev," Gwen scolded her boyfriend, "there's got to be another way."

Ben's eyes lit up, an idea having struck him, "The queen."

"What?"

"That's right," Elena greed. "The infected people, they all went on about their queen."

"You mean a queen like an insect colony?"

Kade leapt up, grabbing Ben's hands in excitement, "You're a genius!" Summoning her magic book to her hands, Kade conjured the spell to open up all her notes on the nano-chips. "The nano-chips are like a colony of bees. There are heaps of drones, but without a leader, the drones are useless. And that's where the queen comes in."

"In a beehive or anthill, there's only one queen. She lays all the eggs, produces all the offspring, and tells everybody what to do."

Ben shot Gwen a confused look, who merely muttered, "The Science Channel."

"You're welcome for that by the way," Kade mused from her place beside Ben, "I forced him to watch the Science Channel. Taught him heaps."

Kevin wrinkled his brow, "I taught you how to hack."

"I taught you everything about mechanics."

At that the three teenagers exchanged a look and Ben smirked at his friend, "Kade taught you all about mechanics?"

The black-haired boy grumbled and refused to look at the group as Kade laughed outright. Elena rolled her eyes, "How do you destroy a hive?"

"Remove the queen, the bees disband," Ben planned aloud, "The queen dies, the hive dies. We have to find the queen."

"Alright people," Max instructed, "Nobody sleeps tonight. I'm going to dissect these chips to see what they're made of. Kevin, we need to find a more effective way around those drones. Gwen, find a way to disrupt the connection between those things and their human host. Ben, they're one-hundred-million chips out there. Gonna be like finding a needle in a haystack to find the queen in there, but get on it. Kade, use your powers and scan for the queen as well, work with Ben. Now, Elena, since you're here, you'll help too. I don't want them going two feet without an escort."

Kade raised her hand like a child, pouting innocently at Max, "What if I need to go to the bathroom?"

Max turned back to the chips and all was silent for a moment; Ben clapped his hands, "Okay, people, let's move!"

Ben and Elena sat down into the two available desk chairs and Kade crossed her legs, hovering in mid-air. A wave of dizziness washed over the girl for a moment, but Kade shook it off and closed her eyes. The teenagers and Max began to work feverishly into the late hours of the night.

 **XXXXX**

Kevin was asleep at his desk and Gwen tapped lazily at the keyboard. Elena and Ben were still awake and Kade remained in the air, her mana typing in her findings into Kevin's computer.

Ben rolled over to Gwen, noticing how tired she looked, "Gwen, why don't you get some shut-eye? We need that brain of yours working if things get hot."

The red-head didn't even bother to protest, immediately nodding, "Only for a few minutes. And you'd better wake me up" Gwen gestured tiredly to Kade, "Look after Kade for me." The quarter-Anodite lay down on her desk, as soon as Ben agreed.

The Omnitrix-wielder rolled back over to Elena, "You too, get some rest."

"No chance." Elena retorted, continuing to type. "I'll sleep when my dad is home safe and sound."

Ben shrugged slightly, "Suit yourself."

Elena glanced at him a few times, watching as Ben carefully pulled Kade into his arms. He sat down, with Kade in his lap, and frowned as he saw how pale Kade looked. Elena glared for a moment at her so-called friend, before she drew Ben's attention back to herself, "Thanks Ben…for taking the risk to help me, for going up against the team."

"Just like old times, right," Ben grinned, reminiscing. "The guys didn't want you on the soccer team and I stood up to them for you to join. You ended up being our MVP." Ben leant back in the chair, holding Kade close.

Elena smiled, feeling like she was getting Ben's sole attention, "You're not doing this for old times' sake."

"No," Ben admitted, "I'm doing it because I know what it's like to be on your own in a tough situation you never chose to be in." Ben touched the Omnitrix, "I didn't ask to get stuck with this. It just happened. And no one who isn't me or Kade knows how this feels."

Elena nodded, "I think I do. But why Kade?"

"She…" Ben smiled down at the girl in his arms who had fallen asleep as soon as she was out of the air. "Without Kade I would never have found out how to use the Omnitrix. How to be a hero. Without Kade…I don't know what I'd do."

Elena left it at that, trying to stop the pinch in her heart at the fond look Ben was giving Kade. The blue-haired girl shifted, seeming to become even paler and the brunette boy frowned in worry.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Chapter 10, only 5 more actual chapters to go!**

 **Favorite, follow and review: it would much appreciated!**

 **Thank you so much to everyone who is reading this story!**

 **~ Raven**


	12. CHAPTER 11

**_We're Fine_**

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

"Snap out of it, Max! It's Ben!" Ben cried, struggling against Max's strength, trying to stop his grandfather from killing him. Ben had entered Max's office, looking for him to get his help, but instead, Ben was attacked by the very person he hoped could help him. A beam of blue mana shot out of nowhere, sending Max back a few steps.

"Ben, stop! Max!" Gwen yelled, worry in her voice as she ran into the room with the other teenagers.

Ben managed to call out, "We have to restrain him, but be careful not to…" Ben trailed off as Kevin absorbed the rubber of a tire and hit Max over the head.

"Hurt him." Ben finished, an unimpressed look on his face and Kevin shrugged.

"What? He's restrained."

The two boys pushed Max into a chair and Gwen bobbed down in front of her grandfather, "Max, are you okay?"

Kade pursed her lips, her arms crossed, "He's infected, Gwen. I'm sure it'll be something like ' _we_ are fine.'"

"We're fine. Never better," Max replied, a creepy smile on his face and Kade threw her hands up in the air, trying to mask the slight stagger she made as she did so.

"Called it."

"Why are you all looking at us like that?" Drone-Max questioned, the smile still planted on his face, "We're great. We're happy. We're going to colonize Earth."

Kevin blinked slowly, "He usually has a lot of odd jobs for us. But that one's new."

"Grandpa!" Gwen was frantic.

Ben leaned forward, "Fight it, Max! Come on!"

"Let me see," Kade cooed, reaching forward and placing her fingers on Max's temples, "Show me – come on. Show me."

Max began to struggle, the queen knowing full-well what Kade could do. Kade's fingers began to glow as she tried to read his mind. "You can't stop what's coming. The Plumbers are finished." Max began to reach across to the desk. "Mankind is finished."

Kade glared, navy blue mana lighting up her eyes. She turned her head quickly and mana shot from her eyes, setting a piece of paper alight, before she turned back to Drone-Max and smiled dangerously. "Not if we have anything to say about it."

The eldest Tennyson stared at her and suddenly pushed Kade back – who, already weak, had trouble keeping her balance – and pressed the button under the desk, releasing a smoke-like substance into the room.

"Max!" Ben yelled, but by the time the smoke cleared, the seat that Max was in was empty.

"Where did he go?" Elena asked, looking around and Kade sighed heavily and sat in the empty chair herself.

"He's probably in the tunnels. My father built them for him."

"No one knows these tunnels like Max," Ben said, "He's long gone."

Gwen swung her arms out, almost catching Elena in the stomach. "Now what?"

"Like it or not, he usually tells us what to do." Kevin crossed his arms, "We need him."

Ben protested, "No, we don't. He needs us. We have to find the queen and stop her. Helping Max is going to be the least of our problems. Wherever the alien queen is, that's where we'll find your father and Max. We stop her, we stop the spread of these chips."

"You can fire mana from your eyes!" Gwen cried, walking over to Kade and quickly moving forward to steady the blue-haired girl who had started lightly swaying.

"I tend not to do it." Kade groaned, pressing a hand to her pounding head, "Worried they'll explode or something."

The boys and Elena continued to talk, basically leaving the two Anodites to speak. "You need to teach me that."

"Of course, Gwen. Anodites need to stick together." The two girls exchanged a smile and turned back to listen to Kevin, who was speaking.

"And just how do you suggest we do that?"

Ben was silent, having no idea what they could possibly do. Kade grinned and placed a placating hand on Ben's shoulder, "Well, lucky _I_ have a plan."

 **XXXXX**

" _Current geographic coordinates._ "

Kade looked up at the map that contained all the locations of the nano-chips. She knew – as someone who worked on them – that the nano-tech survived in groups. "When we were looking at the map before, I noticed something strange. Something that could lead us the hive."

Ben, whom Kade had previously told the plan to, continued, "Does anything seem weird to you guys about this map?"

"Colour choices are a bit drab," Kevin commented, looking over the map. "Try sea foam blue." Kade shot him a look at the same time that Gwen hit him in the stomach.

"The concentration of the chips…they're odd." Kade tapped on the keyboard.

"London, New York, Paris, Munich," Ben narrated, "and central Missouri?"

"There a millions of people in all those cities, but that part of Missouri is…"

Kevin finished Elena's statement, "The middle of nowhere."

Kade made the computer zoom in on the last location. Gwen agreed with the others, "It's barely a town."

"Exactly." Kade nodded, "So what's so special about that particular place. So I researched, the only place in Barren Rock is—"

Gwen's eyes widened, following her friend's train of thought and Kade hummed in approval of the red-head's quick-thinking, "The world distribution center for Ship-It."

"Right," Ben muttered, realization hitting him, "Those shipments from the local hub would have been the first wave of sentry soldiers. Now we're talking total immersion."

Elena put her own two-cents in, "And they need a big enough base to spread that many chips across the entire planet."

"Come on," Gwen's voice was incredulous, "They're taking over the world by twenty-four-hour shipping?"

"What's your brilliant theory?" Elena retorted. Kade narrowed her eyes at the snappish Validus girl and scowled.

"Look, I think that's where the chips are being manufactured and distributed. And that's where we'll find the queen," Ben pointed at the screen and Kade bit her lip, a look of confliction passing over her face.

Kevin, who thought of Kade like a sister and who was always worried about her, noticed the look on her face, "What is it Az?"

"Okay, so think of this logically," Kade sighed, plonking her body into a desk chair. The expectant looks she was receiving from the others made Kade sigh again. "What's breeding the chips?"

The other teenagers frowned, confused, and Kade clarified her thought, "Only the queen can make the drones and the drones are infecting people…so who's infected by the queen?"

"Let's not focus on that," Elena sneered and instead smirked at Ben, "Sounds like we're in for a road trip."

"What do you mean 'we'?" Gwen asked sharply. They _needed_ to focus on who was infected by the queen as well, but again, Elena was making this situation all about her. Both Ben and Elena shot her a look and Gwen raised her brows, stating sarcastically, "Fine, she's coming."

Kevin and Gwen shared a look of distasted. The two had no issue with Kade, because she respected them for their own talents and didn't treat them like crap, unlike Elena, who acted as if she was perfect and knew exactly what she was talking about all the time.

"Now we just have to figure out how…" Ben mused aloud, "With Kev's car out of commission."

"Yeah, and who's fault was that, Mr I-throw-cars-at-aliens?" Kade teased playfully, poking Ben in the ribs and making the ticklish boy squirm away from her. "But I'm sure Kev has a back-up, don't you Kev?"

Kevin smirked at Kade, "You know me so well, Az."

"You know it," Kade responded and stretched leisurely, "I'll just be disappointed if you didn't use my upgrade."

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **I have to admit, I was quite freaked out by Max in this part. Creepy...**

 **Please favorite, follow and review. It really makes my day!**

 **~ Raven**


	13. CHAPTER 12

**_Don't Say 'Let's Add The Upgrade'_**

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

"Kev made this for your birthday present," Ed told the teenagers as they stood in the garage, looking at an object underneath a sheet, and Ben frowned.

"My birthday was two months ago."

Kevin grinned in response, "You can't rush genius."

"Or reading my schematics," Kade added, giving Kevin a side-long glance. The plans for Ben's car were drawn by Kade and intended to make Kevin a car based on her scribbled diagrams that only she could read, but it didn't work out, and instead mailed the diagrams to her best friend to use.

Kevin grinned at Kade and pulled the blanket off the car, revealing a sleek black vehicle with dark-green accents. Ben's eyes widened and he moved forward to closer inspect the car.

"Oh my gosh, Kevin," Gwen chuckled, "It's beautiful."

"She," Kevin corrected. "She's beautiful. You call a car a 'she.' And you're right. Don't be jealous." The half-Osmosian put an arm around his girlfriend, "You've got some good qualities, too." Kevin kissed Gwen's head and she hit him in the stomach.

"Besides," Kevin trailed off, before mumbling, "Az helped…"

Ben looked up at Kade, "You helped?"

Kade smiled sheepishly, blushing slightly, before side-hugging the Tennyson boy, "Yeah, but I just wrote the schematics and shipped them over here, and Kevin took it from there."

"But you helped out a lot!"

"No, Kev," Kade shook her head. "You get all the credit for this one. Did you add the upgrade?"

Kevin winced at the reminder, the last 'upgrade' of Kade's had literally exploded in his face, and shook his head frantically, "Don't say 'let's add the upgrade."

Elena spoke up, "A car. Your friend built you a car."

"Well," Ed acknowledged, "The weapons and defense systems aren't online yet, but she'll run."

Kevin took a step closer to the car, "Yeah, the fact is, she'll pretty much eat everything in her path."

"Oh," Kade grumbled, "So you added that feature but not the upgrade. _Typical_."

Ben smiled, "I don't know what to say. I can't wait to test her out."

"Oh, you're not driving." The black-haired Osmosian told the Omnitrix-wielder, "I said I was going to give you the car. That was before you bailed out on the team. I'm keeping her."

Ben grinned, "Oh, I'm driving."

"How do you figure?"

"Humungousaur would be happy to throw the car to Missouri." Ben taunted, enjoying the look of terror that was on _both_ Kevin's and Kade's faces.

Kade pursed her lips, "Fine, but I call shotgun!"

 **XXXXX**

The car roared down the road, moving quickly as Ben expertly shifted the clutch. Kade smiled fondly at the boy, watching as he looked so happy to be driving. Kevin, Elena and Gwen were squished into the back-seat, a look of hatred on the quarter-Anodite's face to be sitting beside the Validus girl.

Ben grinned like a child, "I like it."

Kevin pushed his head in between the seats near Kade, replying sarcastically, "I'm thrilled."

"We both are," Kade laughed, her words completely genuine. Reaching forward, Kade placed a dark-blue glowing hand on the dashboard and the speed of the car increased a lot. Moving over, Kade pressed her lips to Ben's cheek, "Happy Belated Birthday, Ben."

 **XXXXX**

The five teenagers walked across a bridge.

"Missouri in February…a dream vacation, only forty degrees colder," the red-head grumbled, her arms wrapped around herself to keep warm. Kade smiled lightly and pressed a ball of mana to the girl's shoulder and Gwen felt a rush of warmth, as her inner mana's strength increased in strength. That was the thing about Anodite's mana; the mana was an energy and heat source for the entire body when Anodite's were in human-form, and Kade's mana was so strong she was able to _give_ it to others.

The teenagers stopped and overlooked the Ship-It center. The center was milling with drone-infected people, who were all working efficiently.

"Let me get a closer look." Ben lifted binoculars to his eyes, "It's like a small army…or not so small." The brunette-boy passed the binoculars over to Gwen, "Check it out."

Kade clicked her teeth together, "There can't possibly be this many nano-chips. Who's manufacturing them?"

"I don't know," Ben answered, "But we're going to be fighting some serious odds down there."

Gwen was still looking through the binoculars, "The people…they're all infected."

"Oops," Kevin commented, looking through the binoculars, watching as a person dropped a crate of canisters, "That's coming out of your zombie paycheck."

"All those crates are filled with chips," Gwen observed, and Elena looked out over the area.

"God, there must be millions."

"Probably six billion," Ben replied tensely. "That's how many people there are on Earth."

"Oh, God," Kade muttered, turning to stare up at Ben, "What's gonna stop them from extending their colonization? To other planets?"

Ben reached down and twined his fingers with Kade's, giving her a reassuring smile and silently telling her that that wasn't going to happen. "Okay, let's get inside."

 **XXXXX**

Ben led the five into the warehouse, and they stepped on the tray of a truck to see.

"Looks like that's where we wanna be, right in there." Elena indicated the warehouse with her head.

"Oh, no!" Gwen said quietly, recognizing a drone, "Grandpa!"

The girl began to stand up properly, but Ben stopped her, "Gwen, no. If he sees us, he'll alert the others we don't belong here. He's one of them now. Hive mind. It's up to us."

The five got off the truck, Kade stumbling slightly as she got off. The three-quarter-Anodite was pale and shaking, and had been for quite a while, but she put on a brave face and followed after her friends.

 **XXXXX**

If Kade had tried to conjure mana right at that moment, she would have fallen over in exhaustion.

If Kade had tried to turn into her Anodite form, she would have immediately died.

If Kade didn't find more energy – and soon – she didn't know what would happen to her.

Kade pressed her fingers to her eyes and breathed out a breath. Her head was pounding, her fingers were shaking and if the young Anodite walked down a dark alley, she would have been mistaken as a ghost.

But she pushed on, and silently crept after her friends into the warehouse.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Honestly, I preferred the first car, but this one was cool too.**

 **Chapter 12, only 3 more chapter (not counting the epilogue)**

 **Oooh! What's happening to Kade?**

 **Favorite, follow and review, please.**

 **~ Raven**


	14. CHAPTER 13

_**Not The Only One Dead**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

They had found their way into the dim-lit warehouse, and saw hundreds of people putting nano-chips into canisters, then into crates and labelling them with stickers titled with the names of countries.

"It's like a human assembly line," Gwen told the others quietly.

Ben glanced around, "No sign of her royal highness, the queen. There's someone we know."

The others all looked to the middle of the room. A man stood, twitching, connected to glowing tubes, which seemed to be streaming out nano-chips. A dark-blue mechanical cube was attached to the man and pulsated at regular intervals. It was a solid, dark blue and was lined with silver metal. Upon seeing the cube, Kade swallowed hard and stumbled forward against the railing of the catwalk.

"It's the creep from back at the mill."

Gwen's jaw dropped, "That's Victor Validus."

The cube gave another pulse, and this time, Kade stumbled backwards to her knees.

"I knew it." Kevin immediately assumed, "I told you not to trust her."

Elena stared at Ben, "It's not like that."

Kade was shaking now, pale and sweaty and her fingers were sparking with blue mana.

"You knew your father was behind this the whole time," Gwen accused"

Ben stepped closer to Elena, "You said you didn't know that guy." He felt betrayed – what else had Elena been lying to him about?

"I don't," Elena's face was screwed up into an expression of sadness, "That's not my dad. He's become some kind of freak."

"And that's just it," Kade rasped. The four all turned to look at the girl who was on the ground and letting mana flood out uncontrollably. Ben rushed to her side, and helped her stand, worry clouding his face. "Anything you don't understand is a 'freak.'"

"No! That's not true! What's happening to you?"

The dark-blue-haired girl laughed without humor, and steadied herself against Ben to stop herself from falling over, "I'm dying. Keeping your 'freak' of a father alive is draining me." Kade pointed out to the cube connected to Victor Validus, "Do you see that cube there?" The teenagers nodded, "I designed that cube to house some of my mana, so I didn't explode anymore cities. I only have _half_ my mana now. The cube is pure energy and has been keeping Victor alive for weeks.

Kade's father had been a mechanic, a very good one, and had taught Kade everything he knew. The Anodite girl had created the cube to hold any energy she couldn't contain. She had designed it to absorb mana when she was close enough and the cube seemed to be permanently stuck on the 'absorb' setting. "Do you honestly think it's normal that a _human_ is the host of an alien queen and reproducing her offspring?"

Elena couldn't answer. Kade had been weak and pale for weeks, but she hadn't really paid attention, more focused on finding her father. "Kade, I'm—"

Kade cut Elena off, not caring for an apology, "Let's focus on the actual problem. I can't get any closer to the cube or it will drain all my mana. If I can just switch the setting, I get all of my mana back. If you disconnect the cube from Victor before the queen is out…" Kade let out a shaky breath, "Let's just say, I won't be the only one dead."

Gwen looped an arm through Kade's, while Ben still supported her, "Well…I think we found out how they're making those chips."

Kade snorted lightly in amusement, "Yeah. I think you could say that."

"No." Elena breathed. How stupid had she been? She had let _jealousy_ dictate how she spoke to Kade and now, the girl who most likely now hated her, was in control of her father's life.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do," Kevin warned the Validus and Roman girl.

Ben began to step back, still holding Kade, watching two infected people warily below them, "Not here, they don't."

By the time the two infected people, a young boy and a woman, looked up at the catwalk, the small group was gone.

 **XXXXX**

Kevin absorbed the metal of a locker, a look of betrayal flashing in his eyes, "All three are in on this together. It's a trap."

The grumpy Osmosian raised his arm, about to hit Elena but Ben shot out an arm, "Back off! It's okay!"

"Yeah, how is this okay?" Kevin retaliated.

"Ben, her father is producing those chips and Kade is keeping him alive. She's letting him produce those chips and she is literally _dying_ to do so. He's the one controlling this who operation." Gwen added.

"Is he?" Ben wrapped an arm around Kade's waist. Kade had begun to shake and sway again and he had gotten worried that she'd fall over. "It looks to me like the chips are controlling him, just like Max! It's not a trap." Ben turned to the Validus girl next, "I trusted you, Elena."

"We had to lie. We knew you'd react like this," Elena looked close to tears and her heart sunk at her fragile her friend looked in the Omnitrix-wielder's arms. "Refuse to help us, treat us like the enemy, just like they did to my father and Kade."

"Kade never lied to us," Kevin growled, "She never said that she didn't know who the guy at the mill was, she just didn't tell us she knew."

"Then I guess you don't know us as well as you thought." Ben stared at Gwen, "Right?"

Gwen looked down without answering and Elena blubbered, "I'm sorry. I just wanted this nightmare to end."

The blue-haired girl who hadn't spoken looked up, "This _nightmare_ isn't over yet. And I personally think it is just beginning."

The red-head nodded, agreeing with her friend. What Gwen had been thinking, Kade had basically taken right out of her mouth.

Kade suddenly crumbled to the ground, like she had just become boneless, and Ben made a slight noise of surprise before he picked her up again and cradled her to his chest. "I'm okay, Ben."

"It sure doesn't look like it," Kevin voiced, only to receive a glare from Kade and Ben simultaneously.

"Gwen?" Kade's voice made Gwen look at her, "Can I borrow some…"

The Tennyson girl immediately straightened, "I can't believe I didn't think of it." Ignoring the questioning looks she received from everyone but Kade, the quarter-Anodite placed her hand over Kade's. A quick flash of pink mana flowed out of Gwen and into Kade, the mana-transfer quick and painless.

Kade shot Gwen a thankful smile, standing up a bit on her own with the new strength from the mana. In reality, Kade's mana was stronger than Gwen's, so it only helped a little bit, and Kade could draw mana from any living creature, but preferred not to. The ability Gwen possessed to push out her mana, enabled her to give it to others and was painless for her.

The blue-eyed girl turned to stare at Victor, mumbling, "The plans."

Ben caught on, "So that's what the plans were for. He was conducting tests on himself. He's the hive. His own body is producing them by the thousands, every minute. But that's also why he stole Kade's cube, because he's just human. He can't do it by himself, he needs more energy."

"In a colony, only the queen can reproduce." Gwen continued, "So…"

Elena frowned, "The queen is inside of my dad."

"We have to shut 'em down, Ben," Kevin stated, "Destroy him, destroy the queen."

"No! You can't!" Elena protested, hoping that her pleading would change Ben's mind.

"I'm sorry, Elena," Gwen apologized, "But Kevin may be right. If it's a choice between one man and the entire human race…"

Gwen didn't need to finish and Kade pursed her lips. "I'm sorry, Elena. But it needs to be done. I'm the only one keeping Victor alive right now, so you know I don't want to do this…but it's what _needs…_ "

"You said you'd save him!" Elena burst out, staring at Ben. The Validus girl couldn't even look at the girl who was still leaning on Ben – how _dare_ Kade even suggest it!? "It's not his fault! He's being controlled by the queen!"

"Dude," Kevin placed his hand on Ben's right shoulder, the one Kade wasn't leaning on, "I know this is hard, but unless you take out this guy, the whole world falls. You know what Max would do."

Ben looked out the drones. At the squeeze of his hand, Ben looked back down at Kade. Dark-blue eyes swirling with determination met his gaze.

"If you don't feel you can do it…I can…" Kade knew that Ben was a wonderful person, and would never, in a million years, be okay with ending an innocent's life, even to save an entire planet. That was why Kade offered to end Victor's life.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **In all honesty, I didn't like Elena Validus as a character, and personally, I think I let that show a bit in the next chapter.**

 **Please review!**

 **~ Raven**


	15. CHAPTER 14

**_Patronizing And Sarcastic Anodites_**

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

A slapping sound resonated around the small group. Kade raised a hand to her stinging cheek and met Elena's furious gaze steadily. "How dare you!?" The Validus girl snarled.

"Oh, dear Elena," Kade sneered, her voice patronizing, "You honestly think that I would just kill Victor?" The dark-eyed girl continued to glare at Kade, "No, no. Listen here, this would be what would happen. I would give all of my remaining mana to Gwen and then I would stagger over to Victor – pale, shaky and most likely coughing up blood – and I would absorb all of the mana out of the cube over there." The girl's sarcastic tone was animated by mocking hand-movements, "I would then proceed to glow with enough mana to level a small city. Gwen would make a mana force-field around me and Victor…and then I would explode."

The other four teenagers gaped at the casual way Kade stated that she would explode for the good of the planet and take queen-infected Victor with her.

Ben shook his head and spoke forcibly, "You are _not_ doing that. I don't know that Max would do, but I know what I wouldn't do. I don't destroy victims, I save them. And I don't let my friends do it for me."

"What's your plan, Ben?" Elena asked.

Ben turned around, looking back at the drones. He hadn't even really noticed that he was still holding Kade close to him; Kade being beside Ben, pressed to his side, felt like the most normal thing in the world.

"It looks like all the soldier chips have been rendered dormant for shipping. If I stop the queen before she can activate them," Ben twisted the dial on the Omnitrix, letting Kade go for the moment, "It looks like we have a chance of beating this thing."

"Ben, wait a minute, what do we do if Alien X or Humungousaur gets absorbed by the hive?" Gwen asked worriedly, stepping closer to her cousin. "It's all over."

Ben paused for a moment and Kade read his expression quickly. "Ben…don't even think about it…"

"Absorbed by the hive is pretty much what I had in mind," Ben admitted, shooting a smile at the worried blue-haired Anodite. "Remember when the Omnitrix scanned the chips' DNA? I can fight them from the inside if I become one of them. The watch as been cooking this up the whole time. It's time to take it out of the oven."

"Terrible analogy, Ben," Kade told the Omnitrix-wielder, rather unsupportively.

Kevin gripped Ben's arm, "Ben, this isn't like anything that you've become before."

"Kevin's right," Gwen agreed. "It's a hive mind based organism."

"So?"

Gwen rolled her eyes, "So, I think the Omnitrix can turn you into one of those things, but I'm not sure it can keep you in control once it does."

Kade tilted her head, finishing Gwen's thought, "You may become a permanent slave to the hive."

"A turbo-charged killer weapon slave."

Elena added her own opinion, "Ben, no. I don't wanna lose you, too."

"We're out of options. I have to put my faith in the Omnitrix," Ben told the team and began to change the dial on the watch.

Gwen pushed Ben roughly, "It always has to be your way, doesn't it, Ben!? Just like walking out on the Plumbers." Gwen glared at Ben, and Kevin and Kade turned away to give the bickering cousins privacy.

"Okay, so maybe I should have stayed and talking it out, but this is different."

"Why?" Gwen cried, disbelieving of what Ben had said.

"This is something I don't wanna do, I just don't see any other way!" Ben yelled back, his own voice raising in response.

Elena suddenly screamed, and the four turned to look at the Validus girl who had been grabbed by one of the drones. The drones in the warehouse all looked up. Hitting her elbow back into the drone's stomach, she followed it up by punching the man in the face.

"Elena!" Ben and Kade yelled simultaneously, stepping forward.

All the drones began to walk forward, and an alarm sounded out into the warehouse. "Guys, look!"

Ben reached down to his watch, and Gwen called out, "Ben, what do you want us to do?"

"Keep 'em busy," was the Omnitrix-wielder's answer and Gwen snapped back, "How!?"

"I trust you," Ben told his red-headed cousin and looked to the one person he wanted the opinion of before he went through with his insane scheme.

Kade reached for the brunette boy, tugged at his leather jacket and kissed him full on the lips. Ben didn't even had time to respond before Kade was pulling away and pulling Ben's face down to press her forehead to his. "Come back to me," the blue-haired girl whispered.

The Tennyson boy realised that he care a lot more about Kade, than just a simple crush. He was just upset that the kiss (that he had been dreaming about for years) with Kade, were in the moments before he possible death. Ben pushed his lips back to Kade's in a quick, chaste kiss, and promised, "Always."

The Omnitrix-wielder pulled back and pushed down hard on the dial. As soon as the boy disappeared, Kade sighed and touched a finger to her lips. Kevin and Gwen bent down to look at the ground, and Kade followed their lead, seeing a small-sized Ben Tennyson on the ground in front of them.

"That is _so_ weird," Kade moaned and watched as Ben became a small, metal bug.

Kevin frowned, "What is that?"

"He's turned into some kind of nano-mechanical organism," Gwen tilted her head and told Kade and Kevin. "Just like the chips."

Ben suddenly flew off, and the trio watched him go. Kade grinned at her best friends, "Come on, let's kick some drone-ass."

 **XXXXX**

The drones began to close in on the group as Victor cried out in pain.

"Run!" Elena yelled and Kade shot out a hand, firing a mana blast at three people, sending them flying back into a wall.

Two others reached for Kade, grabbing her arms and holding her. The blue-haired girl grunted out in pain, and swiftly kicked the man between the legs and punched the woman in the face. The knives she always kept on her were flicked out expertly and Kade threw them at a group of drone-infected people. The blades didn't do any damage, as Kade aimed at their clothes. The knives hit their marks and four people were stuck to the wall by the knives imbedded in the material of their clothes.

Gwen made steps out of her mana and climbed up them, over the drones. The path let her flip over the row of people and she deftly fired an orb of mana at the people behind a forklift. A man came up behind Gwen, one she didn't see, and she turned and screamed, only for the man to go flying back with a sharp blast of blue mana.

"Thank you!"

Kade made a running start and jumped up, using a drone's shoulders to propel her up. "You're welcome," the three-quarter Anodite replied as she caused a wall of blue mana to throw some drones back. Kade landed beside Kevin, the two tag-teaming against some people.

"Whatever Ben is doing, it seems to be working!" Kade yelled at Kevin, who had absorbed the concrete and knocked back a large group of drones. The blue-eyed girl fired an orb at a drone, but received a push from another drone.

"I hope so," Kevin called back and grabbed Kade's hand to help her up. Victor was screaming out in what Kade thought was pain and was now shaking.

The four ran over to stop in front of the Validus man. Something surely was happening, and Kade felt a rush of dizziness. The blue-haired girl stumbled, falling down to her knees. Something had to happen soon.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Too mushy? I think it was time for a kiss between Ben and Kade.**

 **Favorite, follow and review, thank you.**

 **~ Raven**


	16. CHAPTER 15

**_Chopped Liver_**

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

"What's Ben doing in there?" Elena cried, anxious. Kade blinked furiously, trying to stop the black dots from swarming her vision. Kade's groan alerted Kevin, and the boy ran over to help her stand.

The Levin boy glanced at the nano-chips which were beginning to glow in the canisters, "Whatever he's doing, he'd better hurry up."

"The chips are activating."

Victor growled out again in pain, and Kade flinched at the sound. The infected people had begun to swarm the small group again, and Kade flashed out a mana-filled hand and knocked the group back. The small amount of mana, however, drained Kade even further and forced her back to her knees.

Victor screamed and jittered, and gold energy seemed to leech from the man. The same energy rose from the drones and it swirled in a tornado of energy. With a flash, the nano-tech exploded and unleashed a burst of light.

"Victor…Ben did it…" Kade breathed, her breath shaky and her eyes half-closed. The three other teenagers lowered their arms from where they had shielded their eyes.

The formerly infected people looked around in wonder and Victor, on the podium, fell down. The scientist spat out Ben, who still as Nano-Mech, rolled across the ground. Ben began to turn back into his normal form, and Victor blinked, the nano-tech glow fading from his eyes. The people in the warehouse all looked around in confusion, the hold of the nano-tech queen fading from their minds.

"He did it!" Gwen said in wonder and Elena pushed her way through the people to her father. Kevin picked up Kade and both he and his girlfriend followed after the girl in the red jacket.

"Dad!"

"Elena." Victor grabbed Elena's offered arm and turned to look behind her. He glimpsed the familiar figure of Kade standing beside the boy in black, and immediately looked around for the cube, knowing that was making Kade weak. When he found the glowing object, he switched the hidden dial and input his own, personal code to switch off the device.

"Kade!"

Kade opened her dark-blue eyes wider, half of the blue mana in the cube flowing out in a stream back into Kade, twisting and twirling through the air. The mana flowed in her chest, lighting her heart in her chest, which began to pump faster and more steadily in her chest. Kade collapsed to the ground for a moment, an overwhelming feeling of euphoria and strength and she let out a breathy laugh.

"He's alright!" Elena told the three, and Kevin and Gwen hugged. Gwen and Kevin helped Kade stand, who immediately began searching through the crowd for the familiar flash of green leather.

"What am I, chopped liver? Hello, I just saved the world again."

"Don't look at me. I'm not hugging you." Kevin told the boy as Ben stopped in front of the group, and Kade threw herself into Ben's arms quickly. She stayed there for only a moment, before she moved to allow Elena to hug him. The Omnitrix-wielder hugged Elena back, but really only wanted to hold Kade close again.

"Actually, you might not want to hug me so tight," Ben told Elena, pulling away, "I flew through a lot of snot."

Elena laughed at Ben's comment and Kade wrinkled her nose and smiled at the boy's antics. Kevin and Gwen shared a look, unbelieving that _anyone_ could find that attractive.

Ben suddenly realised something and nudged Elena aside slightly, "Max!"

 **XXXXX**

The roller door to the warehouse opened up, letting the people out of the dimly lit area.

"Max! Max, where are you!?" Ben asked as he struggled through the crowd. "Grandpa!" Ben called and was pulled back by a hand on his shoulder.

Max shot his grandson an unimpressed look, "You've got a lot of gall…disobeying orders, defying my authority.

"Grandpa, I…" The brunette boy stuttered out but Max cut him off.

"You know what that kind of behavior gets you?!" Max yanked Ben into his arms with a large smile. The older man pulled back and tapped Ben's cheek.

 **XXXXX**

The seven Plumbers walked through the huddle of bewildered people. Elena's arm was around her father's waist, Max walking beside Victor. Kade was beside Max, Ben's hand in hers and Kevin had his arm over Gwen's shoulders, the young couple on Ben's other side.

"I'm sorry, Victor. Now of this would have happened if I had trusted you and Kade," Max apologized gruffly.

Victor looked at his old friend, "No, Max, it wasn't right to go it alone."

"Speak for yourself," Kade chimed in sarcastically from her space beside Ben. "I think me striking out on my own went _terrifically_."

Victor smiled fondly, "I missed you Kade." The bald man reached over to shake Ben's hand, "Ben, thank you. I'm forever grateful."

Ben shot Victor a half-smile, and squeezed Kade's hand tightly, "You should be thanking your daughter and Kade. If it wasn't for them, I'd be at a school football game right now."

"He's just being modest," Elena told her father and both Kevin and Kade smirked.

"Ben, modest? Impossible," the two best friends taunted the Omnitrix-wielder in unison, before they high-fived. Ben grinned in response and tucked his arm over Kade's shoulders, pressing her into his side.

Kade rested her head on Ben's shoulder, as he said, "I guess we make a pretty good team."

"We make a _great_ team."

Gwen smiled at the others, "We're more than that."

"We're Plumbers," Kade finished lightly. With her energy returned to her, Kade was more light-hearted and happy.

"And the Plumbers have a pretty great leader," Gwen continued looking over to her grandfather.

Max grinned, looking at Ben, "Indeed they do. Ben, what would you say if I asked you to step in?"

Ben gaped at him, "What?"

"Well, I'm not getting any younger. And believe me, I've been waiting for this moment for long enough."

"I couldn't take over," the Omnitrix-wielder muttered, still shocked.

Max continued to press, "You already have, in a way. The Omnitrix could have gone on anybody's wrist. We just count ourselves lucky it found yours."

"I hate to say it, but Max is right," Gwen added, supporting the man's decision.

"Can we at least have a thirty-day trial period?" Kevin's question received a slap from Gwen and a chuckle from the group.

Ben shrugged, "Well, my first order of business will be to unaccept Max's resignation. Sorry, you're not getting out of it that easy."

"Well, maybe you're right," Max admitted, "What in blazes did that zombie me do with my ride?"

Ben sighed, and pulled Kade along with him. "You would have made a wonderful leader of the Plumbers, you know."

"You think?" Ben asked Kade and the girl responded by turning Ben's face to hers and molded her lips to his. The two kissed, a kiss full of promises, affection, and budding love.

"Yes." Kade told Ben breathlessly, when the two pulled away. They kept their eyes locked for a few moments, before they both turned and continued walking, fingers intertwined and Kade's head on Ben's shoulder.

"So what are we now?" The girl mumbled into the material of the green leather jacket, trying to hide the blush tinting her cheeks.

The brunette boy grinned at Kade and promised, "Something. We're definitely something."

Gwen, after cooing internally at the couple, headed over to Elena, "What did you mean when you said, 'we're a great team'? You are not on the team."

"I am now, Red. I earned my place, and I suggest you move your locker far away from mine," Elena snapped back and Kade rolled her eyes.

"You better get used to that. It's the sound of things to come," Kevin placed a hand on Kade's shoulder while Gwen and Elena bickered. "Now give me back my keys."

"Shotgun!" Kade trilled, as Ben stated blandly, "Nice try, Kev. But from now on, I'm driving." Ben walked around the car and opened the door like a gentleman for Kade, allowed her to slide into the passenger seat, and closed the door before getting into the driver's seat himself.

Kevin glared at Kade, about to call shotgun himself and grumbled as he climbed into the backseat. The car roared, and Gwen groaned as the two girls followed to get into the backseat as well.

 **XXXXX**

The car roared down the deserted highway. Ben Tennyson laughed and beside him in the passenger seat, Kade Roman rolled her eyes but laughed as well as she infused mana into the car, making it accelerate further. Kevin Levin, in the backseat, behind Kade, threatened Ben and lectured him on how to look after his beautiful car and repeatedly told Kade to stop forcing the car to go faster. Gwen Tennyson grinned at her boyfriend's words and reached forward to place a hand on Kade's shoulder, completely supporting Kade's use of her powers on the car. Elena Validus sat next to Gwen, and couldn't help but smile as well.

They _were_ a great team…almost like a family.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **That's it! The Alienated Heart's last chapter is done!**

 **I had a great time writing this story and I loved the dynamic Kade had with the others in the team.**

 **The epilogue is coming up, so watch out for that.**

 **Favorite, follow and review please!**

 **~ Raven**


	17. EPILOGUE

_**Epilogue**_

* * *

 **The Alienated Heart is based on the Ben 10: Alien Swarm movie.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of Ben 10. All rights belong to the people who created Ben 10 and the Alien Swarm live-action movie. I only own the character Kade Roman and her plot and dialogue.**

* * *

Six months had passed since the 'nano-chip' incident. Kade had regained her position as head mechanic and analyst at the Plumbers base, and the five teenagers worked well as a team. The blue-haired Anodite spent her days between the Tennyson and Levin households. Gwen and Kade had sleepovers just like when they were kids. The Osmosian and Anodite duo tended to work into the early hours of the morning, tinkering on cars and inventing weapons to help the Plumbers.

Kade and Ben…were another story. The two had been in a relationship for the entire six months, and hardly left each other's sides. The relationship itself was what deteriorated Elena's friendship with Kade, and however said Kade was about losing her friend, she felt an overwhelming happiness with Ben.

In the last week of the month, Kade had taken to sleeping in Ben's bed. Nothing ever occurred, but the two – mainly Kade – were comforted by the hours of talking about anything and everything, and holding each other close.

But that was all going to change.

 **XXXXX**

Kade pushed back the sheets, sliding out the bed silently. The three-quarter Anodite muttered a spell, magically getting dressed in an off-the-shoulder white gown. The girl left a note, simply reading, 'I'm sorry,' and pressed a quick, sweet kiss to Ben's lips. The boy stirred slightly and shifted, and Kade remained silent and still, waiting for the brunette boy to stop moving, before walking out of the room. The blue-haired Anodite hurried down the hall and paused at the front door and wrung her hands. Kade sighed, gaining her confidence and stepped out of the door.

A group of guards stood in the street. It was time after all, and Kade closed her eyes for a moment, before meeting them in the street.

"Princess Azkadellia of Anodyne," the head guard greeted stiffly, and all three bowed. "Under the order of Queen Kalora of Anodyne, you are requested to return to Anodyne."

Kade frowned, but extended her hand slowly. She couldn't change her title, she could not change her name. The blue-haired girl looked mournfully back at the house, feeling a strong sense of deja-vu. The head guard, a tall, dark-pink mana woman, took Kade's hand, and in flash, the street was empty once again.

 **XXXXX**

* * *

 **Kade is a princess! Aah! I never saw it coming!**

 **Sorry, had to...**

 **Also, to those who didn't really understand, I mentioned that Kevin knew Kade's real name in one of the first chapters. 'Az' is a nickname of 'Azkadellia.' (pronounced: Az-kay-del-lia)**

 **Big thank you to everyone w** **ho followed this story and read it, favorited it and reviewed it.**

 **Sadly, _The Alienated Heart_ is finished, but don't worry, there is already a sequel in the works. I have no idea when I'll post it, but keep an eye out for...drum roll... _The Alienated Soul_!**

 ** _The Alienated Soul_ will continue on from Kade leaving Bellwood and Earth.**

 **Thanks again!**

 **~ Raven**


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